Coronavirus: Keir Starmer says ‘serious mistakes made’ by government
Newly crowned Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said “serious mistakes” have been made in the UK’s response to Covid-19 and has set out four targets for the government going forward.
Starmer, who won the Labour leadership race yesterday, said the Covid-19 pandemic was not a time for “scoring political points or opposing for the sake of opposing”.
However, he added that it was his job to hold the government’s actions to account during this period and to “engage constructively” with Downing Street.
The opposition leader said the government’s must deliver on its promise to administer 100,000 tests a day by the end of April; set up vaccination centres around the country for when a coronavirus vaccine is ready; increase distribution of personal protective equipment (PPE) to NHS frontline staff; and to publish an exit strategy from the coronavirus lockdown.
Starmer will begin to have regular meetings with Number 10 starting next week, while also receiving Privy Council briefings.
Writing in the Sunday Times, he said: “The Labour Party I lead will do its bit to offer solutions.
“But we will also speak for those who have been ignored; and where we see mistakes we are under a duty to expose them to ensure that they are rectified as soon as possible.
“The public is placing an enormous trust in the government at the moment: it is vital that that trust is met with openness and transparency about those mistakes and the decisions that have been made.”
Starmer was announced as the winner of Labour’s four-month leadership contest last night, accepting the post with a pre-recorded speech.
Starmer said his Labour Party would have “the courage to support [the government] where that’s the right thing to do”, particularly during the Covid-19 crisis.
He also issued an apology for antisemitism within the Labour Party and promised to “tear out this poison by its roots”.
The party is currently being investigated by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) for institutional antisemitism.
“I will judge succes by the return of our Jewish members and those that felt they could no longer support us,” Starmer said.
He is expected to announce his shadow cabinet today.
Former public policy lecturer at King’s College London Anneliese Dodds and former Bank of England economist Rachel Reeves are considered the frontrunners for shadow chancellor.
Starmer told the BBC this morning that his shadow cabinet would be “balanced across the party, balanced across the country”.
His campaign message throughout the leadership race was that he would bring unity to Labour and end the factional wars between the left-wing and moderate strands of the party.