PMQs: Keir Starmer manufacturers Rishi Sunak ‘Inaction Man’ as he assaults PM on prisons and colleges
Sir Keir Starmer has branded Rishi Sunak “Inaction Man” over issues going through the UK’s colleges and prisons.
The prime minister has been greeted with an array of issues since MPs returned to Westminster after the summer time recess, together with a crisis involving concrete in public buildings, the escape of a terror suspect from jail and allegations a researcher in Westminster spied for China.
The Labour chief attacked Mr Sunak’s file on his dealing with of the problems throughout a testy session of Prime Minister’s Questions, telling the Commons: “Probation, prison, schools, China – yet again, Inaction Man fails to heed the warnings and then blames everyone else.”
He added: “He is failing to stop terrorists strolling out of prison, failing to guard Britain against hostile actors, he is completely failing to stop the boats. How can anyone trust him to protect the country?”
Mr Sunak’s issues started when the Department for Education (DfE) introduced that more than 100 schools had been ordered to close or partially close because of the presence of strengthened autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), a kind of concrete that’s susceptible to collapse after a time frame.
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The saga landed his training secretary, Gillian Keegan, in sizzling water after she was caught on digital camera complaining about not being thanked for doing a “f****** good job” over the disaster – feedback for which she later apologised.
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The sense of chaos prompted by the college closures at first of the autumn time period was compounded by the escape of Daniel Khalife from Wandsworth jail, which prompted a four-day manhunt that culminated in his arrest and seize in Northolt, west London.
And earlier this week, it was revealed {that a} parliamentary researcher with shut hyperlinks to senior Tory MPs was arrested on suspicion of spying for China – a charge he has strenuously denied.
Sir Keir known as for a “full audit of UK-China relations” and highlighted findings from parliament’s intelligence and safety committee that stated the federal government had “no clear strategy when it comes to China”.
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“This has been raised time and time again. But, yet again, the prime minister fails to heed the warnings and he’s now desperately playing catch up,” he stated.
The prime minister replied: “As always, the leader of the Opposition is just playing catch up and hasn’t caught up with the reality of what’s actually happening.”
Labour has sought to make use of the incidents to focus on the Conservatives’ file in authorities, notably with regard to spending and administration.
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Another subject the Opposition has sought to focus on is the small boats disaster within the Channel, after the current good climate noticed more people make the perilous journey.
Speaking within the Commons, Sir Keir stated Suella Braverman’s first anniversary as residence secretary had coincided with 40,000 individuals making the journey, including with a joke: “That is if you overlook the six days she missed when she was deemed a national security risk.”
Mr Sunak hit again by pointing to the federal government’s Levelling Up Bill, which he stated would lead to extra house-building.
The Tories have accused Labour of “blocking” housebuilding by opposing its plans to relax environmental rules to boost housebuilding.
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Current EU-era guidelines imply that when builders construct new houses in protected areas they’re required to supply mitigations to make sure no new extra vitamins reminiscent of nitrogen and phosphorus make it into rivers and lakes.
Labour opposes the change on the grounds it should enhance river air pollution however ministers imagine eradicating the necessities will “unblock” 100,000 new houses by 2030.
Mr Sunak instructed MPs: “He talks about trust, he tried in this House to talk the talk on housebuilding, but at the first sign of a cheap political hit, what did he do? He has caved in.
“Rather than make the suitable long-term choices for the nation he has taken the simple means out,” he said.
“It is typical of the principles-free, conviction-free sort of management that he presents.
“Flip-flopping from being a builder to a blocker. The British people can’t trust a word he says.”