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Starmer and Sunak clash in final TV debate

27 June 2024124 views0

Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Keir Starmer clashed on Wednesday in their final debate before next week’s election, both launching personal attacks.

With Sunak’s Conservatives currently trailing Labour by about 20 points in the polls, the prime minister went on the offensive, accusing Starmer of being dishonest about migration, tax, and women’s rights, and urging voters not to “surrender” to Labour.

Starmer retorted that Sunak’s wealth made him out of touch with the concerns of ordinary Britons. A snap YouGov poll declared the debate a tie, with both leaders at 50%.

On immigration, a top concern for British voters, Sunak dismissed Starmer’s claim that he would return migrants to their home countries, pointing out that many come from Iran, Syria, and Afghanistan. “Is he going to sit down with the Iranian Ayatollah? Are you going to try and do a deal with the Taliban? It’s completely nonsensical. You are taking people for fools,” he said.

Starmer defended that “Part of the problem we have with this prime minister is that his lived world is millions of miles away from the lived worlds of individuals across the country, the businesses, and the families that they’re trying to support.”

Sunak’s campaign has struggled with a gambling scandal involving five party officials, including two candidates.

Starmer, too, has faced criticism at public events, with voters accusing him of being robotic and failing to provide details on funding improvements to public services.

You can watch the debate in full here. Here’s how the media responded.

Unless otherwise linked, the headlines are front pages.

“You are taking people for fools!”
-Sunak slams Labour leader’s ‘nonsensical’ plans to tackle illegal migration in TV debate
-Tells voters not to ‘surrender’ our borders to Keir’s party
-Warns families that their taxes will be ‘whacked up’

Daily Mail, 27/06/2024