Jeremy Corbyn would have made a better Prime Minister than Boris Johnson, says Keir Starmer
21 June 2024, 00:17
Jeremy Corbyn would have made a better Prime Minister than Boris Johnson, Keir Starmer has said.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
The Labour leader was questioned over whether he truly believed his predecessor would have made a "great" prime minister during an election grilling.
It came after he refused several times to stand by the comment, which he made in the run up to the 2019 election.
Speaking during a Question Time leaders' special, he said: "[Corbyn] would be a better prime minister.
"Look what we got, Boris Johnson, a man who made massive promises, didn’t keep them, and then had to leave parliament in disgrace."
Starmer sidesteps questions on his support for Corbyn eight times
In recent weeks, Sir Keir has sought to distance himself from Mr Corbyn.
He criticised the Conservatives' election offer as a "Jeremy Corbyn-style manifesto" that would "load everything into the wheelbarrow" without explaining how to pay for it.
When asked about his remarks, Sir Keir said: "In 2019 I campaigned for the Labour Party as I've always campaigned for the Labour Party."
He said that afterwards it became clear the electorate "thought it was too much and they wanted to see something which was fully costed and fully funded".
Mr Corbyn has accused his successor of attempting to rewrite history with his recent comments.
The now independent candidate for Islington North said Sir Keir had displayed "double standards" in expressing this opinion now, but not while serving in Mr Corbyn's shadow cabinet.
