Winning more important than unity, says Starmer

Move could reunite party, Starmer told as former leader refuses to rule out running as an independent

SIR KEIR STARMER has said winning the next election is more important than party unity as he uses his Labour conference speech today to signpost the end of the Jeremy Corbyn era.

The Labour leader will stress the party’s new focus on building links with business and being responsible with taxpayers’ money. There will also be a deliberate attempt to introduce his personal story and political outlook.

The speech closes a party conference in which Sir Keir’s allies are buoyant after rule changes that make it harder for hard-left activists to unseat Labour MPS and reclaim the leadership. The speech is not expected to explicitly mention Mr Corbyn.

Asked yesterday by the BBC if unity within the party or winning mattered more to him, Sir Keir said: “Winning. Winning a general election. I didn’t come into politics to vote over and over again in Parliament and lose and then tweet about it. I came into politics to go into government to change millions of lives for the better.”

The Brighton address is expected to emphasise how the party has shed aspects of the Corbynite agenda deemed to put off voters, including by embracing a more pro-business stance. A Labour source said: “Keir’s speech will be noticeably different from what you’ve heard from Labour in recent years. It will be more optimistic, more focused on the future, more outward looking.

“It will be a demonstration of the way the Labour Party has changed.”

Last night, the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union announced it would disaffiliate from the Labour Party, accusing Sir Keir of pursuing a “factional internal war” instead of “real change”.

But a Labour spokesman insisted the party was “changing” to “show that we are once again fit to govern”.

JOHN MCDONNELL has called for Jeremy Corbyn to be readmitted as a Labour MP, claiming it is the “one step” Sir Keir Starmer could take to reunite the party. As allies of Sir Keir said

Labour’s Left was at its weakest since Tony Blair was party leader, Mr Corbyn’s acolytes made the case for his return.

Mr Mcdonnell, a former shadow chancellor, said Sir Keir should use his conference speech today to readmit Mr Corbyn, after the suspension of the party whip for his suggestion that reports of anti-semitism under his premiership had been “overstated”.

“One step to uniting the party is to restore the whip to Jeremy,” Mr Mcdonnell told a fringe event at the party conference yesterday.

Mr Corbyn, the former Labour leader, did not rule out running as an independent candidate in his Islington constituency at the next election if he has not had the whip reinstated by that time. He said: “Let’s not go into hypotheticals here.

“As far as I’m concerned I was proud to be elected as a Labour MP in December 2019. I have been elected 10 times in my constituency since 1983. I love the area and do my best to represent all of the people in my community.”

Mr Corbyn did not respond directly to a question about whether he would apologise for his comments about antisemitism, but said: “Racism has no place whatsoever anywhere in our society, in our party, or in our movement.”

Asked about the controversy, Sir Keir said the “ball is in Jeremy’s court” to apologise for the comments if he would like to return as a Labour MP.

“Jeremy was asked to apologise, to take down the post that caused the problem in the first place and to work with us,” he said.

“But I am trying to turn our party from a party that spends far too much time talking to itself to a party that talks to the country about the issues that matter to the country.”

Recent changes to the leadership rules, which increase the proportion of MPS from whom a potential leadership candidate must secure an endorsement, are viewed by the Labour frontbench as a decisive victory against Mr Corbyn’s supporters. “It’s the biggest turning point in 10 years,” a source said.

Another shadow cabinet source said the changes had allowed Sir Keir to “reestablish authority over the party”.

But the leadership suffered a blow yesterday on the conference floor after delegates voted for the party to support a £15 minimum wage.

Sir Keir’s team supports a £10 minimum wage, and suffered the resignation of Andy Mcdonald, a shadow minister, over the issue on Monday.

Mr Corbyn denied Mr Mcdonald’s resignation was a “deep-laid Machiavellian plot” to undermine Sir Keir.

He said he had a “series of private conversations” with Mr Mcdonald over his resignation, adding: “He’s a great guy, a good friend and a brilliant MP.”

Mr Mcdonnell said the resignation was “about the issue itself ”.