Starmer pledges to ‘fight for values’ in elections

Athena Stavrou, The Independent

Sir Keir Starmer will vow to "fight for our values" as he launches Labour's local election campaign on Monday, amid fears a looming electoral wipeout could threaten the future of his premiership. Labour is bracing for heavy losses at the polls this spring as the party continues to lose voters to both Reform on the right and the Greens to the left, in a blow which could spell the end of Sir Keir's leadership. Pollsters have warned Labour is facing a "very substantial threat", as it continues to flounder in the polls ahead of the pivotal electoral test.

But in an attempt to stave off opposition and rally his supporters, Sir Keir will kick off the campaign for the May 7 elections by calling for unity and urging the country to "stand together".

"This is about pride and hope," he will tell a launch event in the West Midlands on Monday.

"That is the political choice in this election. Our opponents respond to this war on two fronts by dividing our communities.

"We meet this test by unlocking the pride that is our communities." He will add: "We're going to fight to earn every vote. Fight for our values. And fight for the country we are building together, a Britain built for all.

The test poses a critical threat to Sir Keir's premiership, with some warning a heavy defeat could raise fresh questions over the future of his leadership. Pollster Lord Robert Hayward has warned Labour faces a "very substantial" threat following what he described as a series of "absolutely horrendous" council by-election results.

It comes months after Labour faced a brutal defeat in the Gorton and Denton parliamentary by-election, which saw them place third behind both the victorious Green Party and Reform.

Zack Polanski insisted the win showed that his party "could win everywhere" and predicted a Green wave in May's elections, threatening to further wipe out Sir Keir's already struggling vote on the left of the political spectrum.

Heavy losses are expected across the country, including in Welsh Labour heartlands, where a recent poll suggested Labour could face being pushed out of government for the first time since devolution began in 1999 in a devastating blow.

The MRP poll for YouGov has suggested that the Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru is set to become the biggest with 43 seats, followed by Nigel Farage's Reform UK in second place on 30.

The dismal polling comes as noise around leadership bits from both within cabinet and from Sir Keir's former deputy Angela Rayner continues to grow, with challengers expected to strike following the elections in May.

But Sir Keir will hope that a series of measures intended to help with the cost of living, including a lower energy price cap and an increase in the minimum wage, will translate into votes.

"We meet this moment with hope," he is expected to say to an audience expected to include his cabinet colleagues and deputy leader Lucy Powell.

"The hope of an NHS where waiting lists are coming down - and they are. The hope of a country where wages for working people are rising - and they are.

"And the hope of a country where poverty is being slashed and our children have a better future — and it is. "That is what we are building. That is what we are fighting for."

His pitch comes after both the Conservatives and Reform UK leaders launched their own local election campaigns, with Nigel Farage framing the vote as a "referendum on Keir Starmer".

In a speech to members in Sunderland, the Clacton MP said the May 7 polls were a "referendum on our entire political class". Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch said the Tories are 'fighting to win everywhere' in local elections, as she insisted they are "coming back" in the polls.