Labour not able to spend its way out of government’s “mess”, Starmer to argue

Keir Starmer will argue that a future Labour government will not be able to spend its way out of the “mess” created by the government, declaring that there is “no substitute for a robust private sector”.

In his new year speech on Thursday, the Labour leader will promise to deliver a “decade of national renewal” and the “economy and the politics Britain deserves”, including putting an end to an era of “sticking-plaster politics” in Westminster.

Speaking in Stratford, East London, Starmer is expected to pledge to bring back the “hope we used to take for granted”, telling attendees: “Showing how we can change the country is so important this year. We can give people a sense of possibility again, show light at the end of the tunnel.”

But the Labour leader will declare that “none of this should be taken as code for Labour getting its big government chequebook out again”, adding: “Of course investment is required – I can see the damage the Tories have done to our public services as plainly as anyone.

“But we won’t be able to spend our way out of their mess – it’s not as easy as that. There is no substitute for a robust private sector, creating wealth in every community.”

Starmer will pledge a “new approach” to the power of government – “more strategic, more relaxed about bringing in the expertise of public and private, business and union, town and city, using that partnership to drive our country forward”.

He is expected to announce that Labour will seek to modernise central government and make it “dynamic, agile, strong and, above all, focused”, ensuring it is “driven by clear, measurable objectives” or “national missions”.

“We will announce these missions in the coming weeks – our manifesto will be built around them. And they will be the driving force of the next Labour government,” Starmer will tell attendees.

He is expected to say: “I believe in our country, I believe in our businesses, I believe in our people, I believe in our spirit, in the ambition they have for themselves and their community.” But he will argue that the British people lack a government that “shares their ambition”.

Starmer will tell attendees: “Let us imagine what we could achieve if we match the ambition of the British people, unlock their pride and their purpose, give them an economy and a politics they deserve.”

“Britain needs a completely new way of governing. You can’t overstate how much a short-term mindset dominates Westminster. And from there, how it infects all the institutions which try and fail to run Britain from the centre,” he is expected to say.

Referencing the NHS, Starmer will argue that the crises currently facing the country have been an “iceberg on the horizon”, adding: “I call it ‘sticking plaster politics’. This year, we’re going to show how real change comes from unlocking the pride and purpose of Britain’s communities.”

The Labour leader is expected to pledge that “a fairer, greener, more dynamic country is coming” and that a “transformed state and politics will take us there”, with “no more Westminster hoarding power” and “no more holding back this country’s economic potential”.