“Some private provision in the NHS” will continue under Labour, Starmer says

Keir Starmer has said “there is some private provision in the NHS and we’re likely to have to continue with that” when asked whether he stands by the pledge made during the 2020 Labour leadership election to “end outsourcing in our NHS”.

In the LBC interview on Thursday evening, he added: “I’m not going to resile from my belief in the NHS as a public health provider. My wife worked for the NHS, my mum worked for the NHS, my sister worked in the NHS, it runs through our blood.”

The Labour leader’s comments followed those of his Shadow Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, who said earlier this year that “the next Labour government may have to use private sector capacity to bring down NHS waiting lists”.

Starmer made ten pledges in his bid to become leader. One stated that “public services should be in public hands, not making profits for shareholders,” and that he would “end outsourcing in our NHS” among other services.

Following the interview, left-wing group Momentum tweeted “this is deeply disturbing, damaging and unpopular”, arguing that a “radical Labour government” established the NHS as a “cherished public good” but “creeping privatisation” is creating a “US-style, profiteering Wild West health system”.

Asked on Thursday whether he supports “common ownership of rail, mail, energy and water”, which was also one of his pledges, he told listeners that the UK is in a “different position” now and that Labour would inherit a “very broken economy”.

“I’m pragmatic about this, not ideological. But we’ve got to face the reality of the situation, which is post-Covid, our economy is in a different position. But I’m, I’m not one of these people that’s ideological about it, it must be one thing or the other. We’ve got to be practical,” the Labour leader argued.

Starmer also rejected the idea that Labour would “form an alliance” with the SNP during the interview, saying that there is “no basis for an alliance with a party that wants to break up the United Kingdom”.

He told listeners that there has “got to be reform” of the House of Lords, highlighting Labour’s ongoing constitutional commission being carried out by former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown, but said changing the voting system that the UK uses for general elections is “not a priority”.

“It’s not a priority for me. An incoming labour government’s going to have his work cut out. And I’ve made clear that my three priorities are going to be growing the economy, growing the economy and growing the economy,” he said.

Commenting on the ongoing Conservative leadership contest, he told listeners: “I don’t mind which Tory candidate wins.” He argued that the Tories are responsible for “12 years of stagnation, 12 years of low growth”, adding: “I don’t think changing the person at the top of the Tory Party is the change that we need.”

He described low growth in the economy over the past decade as the “single biggest failure of the government” and said Labour would “boost the economy, get the economy going, rebuild our public services and unite our country”.