Keir Starmer today pledges to lead a radical, reforming Labour government that is bolder than Tony Blair’s on public service reform, as he announces plans to accelerate housing building and get more young people on to the property ladder. In an interview with the Observer before Thursday’s local elections, the Labour leader insists he will more than match Blair for radical ideas on overhauling public services including the NHS. “This will be a bold and reforming Labour government bringing about real change that I hope will be felt through the generations,” Starmer said. “I think we can go beyond what the Blair government did on public services … because I think there is unfinished business there.” He added: “We will be a reforming government ready to go from day one, further than Blair on public services, further than the Tories in the private sector.” Starmer says this did not mean a further expansion of the private sector’s role, as happened under Blair’s New Labour, but rather developing services to meet today’s needs, with greater focus on prevention. It is understood Starmer has been in recent discussions with the former prime minister about how to approach the challenges of a first term, including how to act fast if he enters No 10. Starmer is expected to make major speeches on the future of the NHS and education within weeks, in particular fleshing out ideas to expand primary care, and move more services from hospitals into the community. Today – in a further sign of the party building a more substantial policy programme for an expected general election next year – Starmer vows to reverse recent Tory changes on planning and re-introduce targets to ensure the private sector builds at least 300,000 new homes a year. Starmer said this could be achieved by giving local councils greater powers to answer local housing needs. He also said first-time buyers would be given “first dibs” on buying new local houses, with overseas buyers being blocked from purchasing them, as part of a drive to address issues of intergenerational unfairness. He said: “Home ownership matters. I want to make it clear Labour is the party of home ownership. The dream of home ownership has been killed by the prime minister because he has taken those targets away.” On Thursday more than 8,000 council seats in England will be contested in Rishi Sunak’s first electoral test. Starmer said he would regard winning just 400 seats as good progress, given that the Tories performed so badly the last time the same local authority areas were contested in 2019 in the dying days of Theresa May’s premiership. In the latest Opinium poll for the Observer, Labour’s lead stands at a commanding 18 points, up four points compared with a fortnight ago. With seats in 230 authorities up for election, the Tories had been hoping the polls would tighten before polling day. They are hoping to avoid heavy losses in both the “red wall” of traditional Labour seats and the “blue wall”, south-eastern seats where they have previously been strong. However Opinium gives Labour 44% of the vote while the Tories are down two points on 26% – suggesting progress under Sunak may have stalled. The Lib Dems are unchanged on a 10% vote share. Some 20% of 2019 Conservative voters have switched their vote to Labour. Starmer’s comments on reform suggest he is preparing to begin a new, less cautious phase of his leadership in which he will flesh out more domestic policies, after criticism from some commentators that he lacks eye-catching ideas and vision. He pledged to bring forward plans to make student financing fairer while avoiding saying he would scrap tuition fees completely, as he promised in his 2019 leadership campaign. Starmer said the nation’s finances had deteriorated drastically since he made the promise but that he was determined to change the system.
Lisa Nandy, the shadow housing secretary, promised help for first-time buyers, saying: “Labour will also support first-time buyers with a comprehensive mortgage guarantee scheme and by giving them first dibs on new houses in their area, to ensure more families can enjoy the pride and security of owning their own home.” The Tories predict they will lose 1,000 seats on Thursday, an estimate Starmer dismissed as blatant expectation management. Metropolitan boroughs, unitary authorities and district councils that were last contested four years ago will all go to the polls. There are also elections in Northern Ireland in two weeks but none in Scotland, Wales or London. The Tories are defending 83 councils and almost 3,370 seats, while Labour will be looking to gain on the 49 councils they control.