Keir Starmer delivered one of his strongest Prime Minister's Questions performances, using withering disdain to bat back critics and defend his government's defence investment plan. The Labour leader accused the Conservatives of 'faux outrage' over defence spending, pointing to their own record of cuts during 14 years in power.
Starmer's forceful defence of defence investment
Starmer forcefully slapped down SNP Westminster leader Dave Doogan and Reform UK's Lee Anderson, but it was Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch who drew his sharpest responses. She focused all her questions on the Defence Investment Plan (DIP), but Starmer refused to accept lectures from a party he accused of slashing defence budgets.
In his second response to Badenoch, Starmer said: 'Their record is cutting spending. My record is raising it to £300bn, and rising. Their record is cutting frigates by a quarter, cutting minehunters by a half and leaving 47 of 49 defence programmes delayed or over budget. My record is the biggest boost to defence investment since the 1980s.'
Starmer's punchy rebuttals
He continued: 'Their record is missing army recruitment targets every year for 14 years. We've given our armed forces the biggest pay rise for 20 years and increased funding by £15bn a year.' In a third response, he accused the Tories of cutting defence from 2.5% to 2.3% of GDP while increasing the welfare bill by £88bn. 'So no lectures from them,' he added.
In his fourth and final exchange, Starmer said: 'They won't defend their record because they can't. They won't apologise for it because they'd have to admit what we all know is a total failure. They just try to pretend the 14 years they were in power never really happened.'
Badenoch shifts focus to Burnham
Badenoch appeared less aggressive than usual, perhaps losing interest in the PMQs format. Notably, she turned her fire on Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham during the session, suggesting she sees him as a more relevant opponent. Starmer's performance was widely seen as effective, combining punch and passion to make his point.
