Sunak All but Rules out Spring Poll as Starmer Seeks to Make Election About the Economy

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer gives a speech, at the National Composites Centre at Bristol and Bath Science Park in Bristol, England on Jan. 4, 2024. Stefan Rousseau/PA

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has almost ruled out the prospect of a spring general election, as Labour’s leader, Sir Keir Starmer, told an audience in Bristol he wanted to make the economy the number one issue.

When the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, cut national insurance rates in the Budget in November, there was speculation Mr. Sunak might be aiming for a spring general election.

But on Thursday, Mr. Sunak, who was meeting voters in the former mining town of Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, told broadcasters, “My working assumption is we’ll have a general election in the second half of this year and, in the meantime, I’ve got lots that I want to get on with.”

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said, “Squatter Sunak is holed up in Downing Street, desperately clinging on to power rather than facing the verdict of the British people.”

Sir Keir told Sky News, “We are ready for an election, I think the country is ready for election, people are crying out for change.”

Referring to the prime minister, he said: “If he’s not going to set a date, what’s he hiding from the public? This has serious implications for the country because he’s basically saying he’s going to be squatting for months and months in Downing Street, dithering and delaying.”

Mr. Sunak—who has to hold an election before Jan. 28, 2025—declined to formally rule out a May election but suggested he wanted more time to put into place his policies after only taking over from Liz Truss in Sep. 2022.

Sunak Promises to ‘Keep Cutting People’s Taxes’

The prime minister said he would “keep cutting people’s taxes,” and he said, “We want to do more because as we manage the economy responsibly, we can cut your taxes, give you and your family peace of mind, immediate relief from some of the challenges you’re facing and confidence that the future is going to be better for you and your children.”

“That is going to be the single biggest difference between us and the Labour Party in the next election,” he added.

While Labour is keen to make the election about the economy and the cost of living, the Tories are determined to make immigration a top issue by getting their Rwanda policy off the ground and stopping small boat crossings, while highlighting Labour’s perceived weakness on the issue.

Sir Keir, who was visiting a research and development centre in Bristol, acknowledged there was widespread disillusionment with politicians, and he said apathy and “the shrug of the shoulder” was the biggest challenge Labour faced.

Sir Keir told the audience, “We don’t just expect an election on the economy, we want an election on the economy and we’re ready for that fight, ready to close the book on the trickle-down nonsense once and for all.”

Starmer: ‘This Isn’t a Game’

He said: “This isn’t a game. Politics shouldn’t be a hobby or a pastime for people who enjoy the feeling of power. Nor should it be a sermon from on high, a self-regarding lecture, vanity dressed up as virtue.”

“We are trying not just to defeat the Tories, but to defeat their entire way of doing politics, a mindset that seeks out any differences between the people of this country, and like weeds between the paving stones will pull apart the cracks so ultimately they can divide and rule,” he added.

Sir Keir accused the government of planning to exploit “every opportunity for division” for “political potential.”

One issue which is clearly going to become a major battleground in the election is Labour’s plans to spend £28 billion a year on green energy investment.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during a visit to the MyPlace Youth Centre, in Mansfield, England, on Jan. 4, 2024. Jacob King/PA

Labour says it will bring down energy bills in the long-term, drive growth and reduce reliance on overseas fuels but Mr. Sunak told his audience in Mansfield it could not be done “without putting up inflation, without putting up mortgage rates or without putting up all your taxes.”

“We are going to keep talking about it because ultimately it’s going to impact everyone in this country and we’re going to cut their taxes and make sure everyone knows that if they ever get a lefty, your taxes are going up,” he said.

Starmer Defends Green Investment Policy

Sir Keir defended the green investment policy but said his party’s fiscal rules would take precedence.

Labour had originally promised in 2021 to invest £28 billion a year until 2030 in green projects, but last year shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said the figure was a target to work toward the second half of a first parliament.

Sir Keir said, “The money that is needed for the investment that is undoubtedly needed, saying that the £28 billion will be ramped up in the second half of the Parliament, that it will be subject of course to any money that the Government is already putting in, and it will be subject to our fiscal rules.”

“That means that if the money is from borrowing, which it will be, borrowing to invest, that the fiscal rules don’t allow it, then we will borrow less. It is very clear, and that is why this attack is utterly misconceived,” he added.