Kemi Badenoch accused Sir Keir Starmer of talking “trash” and leading a “job-killing Government” as they clashed over the economy at Prime Minister’s Questions.
The Conservative leader responded to criticism of councils led by her party by attacking Labour-run authorities where the “rubbish is piling up”, adding: “People vote Labour – all they get is trash, just like what he’s saying at the despatch box.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir said he did not need any “lectures” on the economy from the Tories given their record in power, as he defended his Government’s spending plans.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch was scathing over Labour’s record (House of Commons/UK Parliament)
Mrs Badenoch opened the session by warning she speaks regularly to businesses who are making redundancies or closing, asking: “Has the Prime Minister been given an estimate of how many people will lose their jobs because of his budget?”
Sir Keir replied: “I am really pleased to say we have got thousands of new jobs into the economy. We have got more investment in the last 20 years, an absolute record. Wages are up higher than prices, three interest rate cuts, the best boost for the cost of living for a very long time.”
But Mrs Badenoch suggested Sir Keir “needs to get out more”, saying: “Inflation is up, and estimates of job losses are between 130,000 and 300,000. His tax rises are hurting every sector of the economy. Things are getting worse for nurseries.
“Nurseries are writing to stressed parents right now telling them that fees will go up because of his jobs tax. Can he explain how more expensive childcare is good for the economy or for working families struggling to make ends meet?”
Sir Keir replied: “We’re putting in childcare. Look at the breakfast clubs – two in her constituency. But she’s rather forgetting the £22 billion black hole that they left that we had to deal with.
“That’s why we had to take the necessary but right measures we did in the budget.”
Mrs Badenoch said Sir Keir is “out of touch”, adding: “Because he should know that nurseries are charging over £2,000 for full-time care – that’s £24,000-a-year after tax – and he’s talking about 60p breakfast clubs. He has no idea what people out there are experiencing.
“And it is not just the families. Even councils must pay his jobs tax.
“To cope with it, the average council tax bill is increasing by over £100 in April after he promised to freeze it. Hardworking families’ money is going to the Chancellor instead of social care and fixing potholes. Why should these families pay more for less?”
Sir Keir replied: “Well, she really shouldn’t denigrate what she calls, I think, 60p breakfast clubs. She should be welcoming them.
“And she asks about council tax – the Tories put up council tax every year for 12 years. Their manifesto, Tory LGA (Local Government Association) manifesto, ‘Government should remove the caps on council tax’.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he would accept no lectures from the Opposition (House of Commons/UK Parliament)
Sir Keir listed a series of Conservative-run councils across southern England which asked to increase their council tax by more than 5%, including in Hampshire and Slough.
“We said no,” the Prime Minister repeated, adding: “We’re the ones that are doing the right things to get this country on the right track.”
Mrs Badenoch countered: “The point is he promised to freeze and (council taxes) are going up.
“And if he wants to talk about councils, let’s look at Liverpool or maybe Birmingham where the rubbish is piling up so high. People vote Labour – all they get is trash, just like what he’s saying at the despatch box.”
Mrs Badenoch went on to warn about the prospect of food price increases in supermarkets, which she said would be linked to Labour’s “jobs tax”.
She said: “And that’s before we get to the immoral family farm tax on the very farmers who work so hard to produce our food.
“What does the Prime Minister have against farmers, anyway? Does he not see his budget is killing farming in this country and he is making life so much harder for everyone else?”
Sir Keir replied: “The budget provided £5 billion for farming over the next two years. That is a record amount.
“We’ve set out the roadmap for farming which has been welcomed by farmers and many thousands of farms have benefited from the farming schemes.
“But she talks about prices – wages are going up higher than prices, that’s the first in a long time that that’s happened, so for families across the country, they’re better off under Labour.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hailed his party’s achievements (House of Commons/UK Parliament)
Mrs Badenoch said Sir Keir has “no answers” and claimed the Government will try and blame “global events”.
She said: “The truth is they trashed the economy with their bad choices.
“They said they’d look after pensioners, then they snatched winter fuel payments. They said they’d be pro-business, but they hiked taxes on jobs. And he promised to freeze council tax, but it’s going up by £100.
“This is a high-tax, low-growth, job-killing Government. Will he use the emergency budget to fix the mess he’s made?”
Sir Keir replied: “Inflation under them was 11%, a £22 billion black hole, a mini budget that made us the laughing stock of the world, and they want to give lectures on the economy to us? No thank you very much.”