Sunak 'stabbed Boris in the back' and 'got thrashed by Truss': Starmer tears into new PM
25 October 2022, 19:57
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has ripped into new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, accusing him of "stabbing Boris in the back" and being thrashed by Liz Truss in the leadership contest.
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Addressing his shadow cabinet, Sir Keir launched a blistering attack on Mr Sunak, warning that he would be a "weak" Prime Minister who will always put the interests of the Tory Party before those of the country.
He reminded his team that the new PM had only ever fought one leadership election battle and was "thrashed" by Liz Truss in the process.
"Rishi Sunak stabbed Boris Johnson in the back when he thought he could get his job," Sir Keir said, according to a readout of the meeting.
"And in the same way, he will now try and disown the Tory record of recent years and recent months and pretend that he is a new broom.
"But he was also the Chancellor who left Britain facing the lowest growth of any developed country, the highest inflation and millions of people worried about their bills.
"And now he plans to make working people pay the price for the Tories' crashing the economy."
Andrew Marr: Sunak's 'bold' Cabinet reshuffle shows how confident he really is
Sir Keir continued: "Rishi Sunak is a weak Prime Minister who will have to put his party first and the country second.
"His first message yesterday was about the need to save the Tory Party, not serve the country."
He accepted that the Tories would see a "bounce" in the opinion polls but said he had always known Labour's huge lead in recent polling was no more than an "enjoyable story".
Read more: Rishi Sunak's speech in full as he becomes UK's third PM in two months
Mr Sunak took over from Liz Truss as PM on Tuesday, quickly reshuffling his Cabinet in a bid to form a government of all talents - a pledge he made when speaking to MPs at the 1922 Committee following his victory.
In his opening speech as PM, he vowed to "fix" the mistakes of his predecessor and win back the trust of the British public.
Noting he was "not daunted" by the prospect of his new role, he added: "you cannot question the moment, only the willingness".
The leader steps into the role amid financial turmoil for Brits, following Ms Truss' mini-budget blunder in September.
As well as helping families face the crippling cost of living crisis, Mr Sunak has pledged to work towards "a stronger NHS" with "better schools, safer streets, control of our borders, protecting our environment, supporting our armed forces and levelling up" key priorities.
