Speaking on a visit to Berlin, where he held talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the Labor leader highlighted the “fancy” spending promises made by the five contenders to succeed Boris Johnson. “They just blew their financial credibility,” he said. “And of course, although he has now retired, one of the people who made these claims was the actual chancellor – and apparently the ex-chancellor was also in the traveling circus.” Buoyed by talks with centre-left Scholz, from Labour’s sister party the SPD, who won a surprise election victory last December on a campaign promise of “respect”, Starmer rejected the idea that a new Tory leader would could rebuild the party’s reputation. “It’s a party that no longer makes sense of what it stands for,” he said. “That’s why you have all these candidates scratching each other’s eyes, taking lumps out of each other.” Asked if the Tories could see a rebound in their ratings when Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street and a new leader takes over, Starmer insisted he was not worried. “We’ll have to see what happens, but it’s like a football team that’s dragged into the relegation zone, they can see the drop and they’re desperately trying to change the manager in the hope and belief that that will make a difference. . It doesn’t work in football and it’s not going to work for the Conservative party.” He said the past few days, in which all the candidates except Rishi Sunak have pledged to reverse planned tax increases, with most also pledging to increase defense spending, have strengthened his resolve to fight the next election on the economy. “Labour has got to the point where we can have elections and win elections – and we want to fight those elections on the economy. We are not going to fight it on issues like the NHS, because we are the custodians of the NHS and everyone understands that,” he said. Keir Starmer walks past a section of the Berlin Wall known as the East Side Gallery on the second day of his two-day visit to the German capital. Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA He highlighted weak economic growth, stagnant real wages and skyrocketing inflation, warning that Johnson’s “zombie government” would be unable to tackle the cost of living crisis, with annual energy bills expected to reach £3,000 in October. The shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, used a speech this week to reaffirm her determination to be tough on public spending. He highlighted Labour’s fiscal rules, which would ensure the party only borrowed for investment, while promising to reduce the national debt as a share of the economy over time. Starmer said all Tory leadership candidates should be challenged on how they will fund their tax and spending promises – by cutting public services or increasing borrowing. “We’re dealing with a very real cost-of-living crisis – people literally unable to pay their bills – and you’ve got a Conservative leadership race that’s completely divorced from reality,” he said. “They give fantastic, uncosted commitments over spending commitments.” He also raised concerns about hints from some candidates that the government’s net zero policies could be weakened as a result of pressure from the party’s right wing. “Abandoning net zero commitment is just sheer irresponsibility,” he said, highlighting the “huge opportunities” for green jobs in new technologies. Labor believes Starmer’s two-day visit to Berlin, where he met business leaders as well as Soltz and other politicians, underlines his prime ministerial credentials. The two leaders discussed Labour’s Brexit stance, which includes a number of practical steps aimed at “making Brexit work”, such as trying to negotiate mutual recognition of professional qualifications and a vet deal to reduce trade frictions . Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every weekday morning at 7am Labor also hopes that by taking a more conciliatory approach to the Northern Ireland protocol – rather than the government’s combative stance – it could create a more positive relationship in other areas. “What a new Labor government will bring to the table is a very high level of trust and respect around the negotiating table in the discussions we have to have with the EU and other countries around the world – and a very firm commitment that when we sign international agreements , we will abide by them,” Starmer said. Despite having championed the cause of a second Brexit referendum while in Jeremy Corbyn’s first seat, he now considers the issue closed and has resisted pressure from some in his party to back a return to the customs union or single market. Starmer is expected to face a disgraced Johnson at final Prime Minister’s Questions next Wednesday, with a new leader likely to be in place when the House of Commons returns from its summer recess in early September.
