In a heated final debate before next week’s election, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Keir Starmer exchanged sharp, personal attacks regarding their own and their parties’ credibility.
With Sunak’s Conservative Party trailing Labour by approximately 20 points in the polls, the prime minister launched an aggressive offensive. He accused Starmer of being dishonest with the public on issues like migration, taxes, and women’s rights, urging voters not to “surrender” to Labour.
Starmer countered by claiming that Sunak was too wealthy to understand the concerns of average Britons. A snap YouGov poll reflected a tie in the debate, with both leaders receiving 50% support.
On the critical issue of immigration, Sunak dismissed Starmer’s claim that he would repatriate migrants, pointing out that many had 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,” Sunak said.
Polls suggest that Starmer is poised to win the election with a significant majority, potentially ending 14 years of Conservative rule. Both leaders have participated in several debates and public sessions, focusing on who is better suited to lead the country.
Starmer argued that the nation is weary after 14 years of Conservative “chaos” and that he better understands the challenges facing families who have struggled with soaring inflation and a cost of living crisis. “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,” he said.