Keir Starmer launches Labour’s local election campaign with attack on Reform amid rising alarm at Nigel Farage threat – with polls sliding after disastrous Spring Statement_Nhy
Keir Starmer launched Labour’s local election campaign today amid rising alarm at the threat from Reform.
The PM joined his deputy Angela Rayner in the East Midlands as they formally kicked off the push towards the votes on May 1.
He took direct aim at Nigel Farage, accusing him of ‘fawning over Putin‘ and not being able to unite his own MPs.
However, more alarming evidence has emerged of the hit Labour has taken from Rachel Reeves’ desperate efforts to balance the books in the Spring Statement.
A mega-poll has found Reform would win the most seats if a general election was called now, putting Nigel Farage on track to be PM.
The research for PLMR by Electoral Calculus suggested Mr Farage’s party would secure 25 per cent of the vote, with Labour and the Conservatives tied on 23 per cent each.
Analysed using the constituency-by-constituency MRP method, that gave Reform 227 seats in the House of Commons – up from five at last year’s election.
Labour slumped from 412 to 180 while the Tories would get 130, up from 121.
With all three parties falling short of the 326 constituencies needed to win a majority, the election predictor suggests the prospect of ‘a Reform-Conservative coalition government with Nigel Farage as Prime Minister’ is ‘increasingly likely’.
Keir Starmer joined his deputy Angela Rayner in the East Midlands as they formally kicked off the push towards the votes on May 1
He took direct aim at Nigel Farage , accusing him of ‘fawning over Putin ‘ and not being able to unite his own MPs.
The findings came after a More in Common poll found Labour dropped three points of support over the past week.
Sir Keir’s outfit was on 21 per cent, behind the Tories on 26 per cent and Reform on 25 per cent.
A separate YouGov survey found the government’s approval rating has slumped to a joint record low.
The research showed just 14 per cent approved of Labour’s performance, down five points in a week. Meanwhile, disapproval was up eight to 68 per cent – giving a dire net score of minus 53.
Labour insiders have been sounding increasingly worried about local elections and the Runcorn by-election on May 1.
In theory the party should be gaining councillors as the last time they were contested was 2021, the high water mark of Boris Johnson‘s Tory administration.
However, there have been suggestions about a net loss of seats, with concerns that pro-Gaza independents might wreak havoc.
Sir Keir told supporters that Labour’s ‘plan for change’ is ‘beginning to bear fruit across the country’.
Taking aim at Reform UK, he said: ‘They say they want to run the country. They can’t even run themselves. You can literally fit their MPs now in a back of a cab, but they still don’t know where they’re going.
‘They talk the language of workers’ rights. They talk it all right – online, sometimes on the doorstep.
‘But what do they do? They voted against banning hire and refire. They voted against scrapping exploitative, zero-hour contracts. They voted against sick leave and maternity pay. That’s what they do. And what about the NHS? They want to charge people for using our NHS.
‘They claim to be the party of patriotism. I’ll tell you this: there’s nothing patriotic about fawning over Putin.’
The local polls – and a by-election in the Runcorn and Helsby seat vacated by ex-Labour MP Mike Amesbury – will be the first big electoral test for Sir Keir since last July’s general election, giving a sense of where parties stand nationally.
A More in Common poll has found the party dropped three points of support over the past week. Keir Starmer’s outfit was on 21 per cent, behind the Tories on 26 per cent and Reform on 25 per cent
It comes after YouGov found the government’s approval rating has slumped to a joint record low
They come against the challenging economic backdrop of global tariffs announced by Donald Trump and a series of spending cuts made by Chancellor Rachel Reeves as she seeks to balance the country’s books.
Ballots will be held for 23 councils and six mayoralties in England.
Labour chairwoman Ellie Reeves said: ‘Labour is the only party with a Plan for Change. We’re finally turning the tide on 14 years of Conservative chaos and decline which badly let working people down.
‘Whether it be through putting more money in people’s pockets through our boost to the minimum wage, fixing our NHS, or investing in our roads to finally end the Tory potholes plague, Labour is delivering the change working people voted for last year.
‘By electing Labour councillors and Labour mayors on Thursday May 1, you can help bring change to your area – and bring change to Britain.’
