“Labour would bankrupt every generation, Rishi Sunak said as he warned voters that they have four days to “save the country”. In an interview with The Telegraph ahead of his final week on the campaign trail, the Prime Minister claimed Sir Keir Starmer’s party would raise taxes for people in every “stage of life”…The Prime Minister urged undecided voters to back the Conservatives, saying: “Labour would bankrupt people in every generation. Whatever stage of your life, Labour will put up your taxes. Buying your first home, starting a family, sending your kids to a fee-paying school – Labour would raise your taxes. Investing your savings, receiving your state pension and leaving behind a legacy – Labour would raise your taxes.” The Tories claim Labour would hit first-time buyers by raising stamp duty, working age people by taxing savings and private school fees, and pensioners by taxing the state pension.” – Sunday Telegraph
“Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are to begin a housebuilding blitz within days of gaining power if Labour wins the election. At least three housing announcements are expected to be made in the first fortnight of a Labour government. Speaking to The Sunday Times, Starmer promised to “hit the ground running” and turbocharge housebuilding from “day one”. This will include a local authority-led review of green belt land. Before the end of next month, Labour intends to publish a draft national planning policy framework, reimposing targets to ensure that councils are meeting local housing needs. Most young people cannot afford to buy their first home without financial support.” – Sunday Times
“Sir Keir Starmer has refused to guarantee David Lammy will be his Foreign Secretary after the General Election. It fuelled speculation former Foreign Secretary David Miliband could even make a David Cameron-esque comeback…Some say the brother of Ed Miliband would be a great foreign secretary but one MP dashed the idea saying they wouldn’t want a peer in the role. The former cabinet minister has been spotted out campaigning for Labour in a marginal Tory seat.” – The Sun on Sunday
“Reform UK has dropped three of its candidates following reports they had made offensive or racist comments, a spokesman has said. Edward Oakenfull, who is standing in Derbyshire Dales; Robert Lomas, a candidate in Barnsley North, and Leslie Lilley, standing in Southend East and Rochford, will still appear on the ballot paper as Reform candidates as it is too late for them to be removed. A Reform spokesman said if any of the three were elected they would sit as independent MPs.” – BBC
“Labour’s vote share has fallen to its lowest level in more than two years ahead of the general election, new polling shows. Support for the party dropped by four percentage points in the space of a week following Sir Keir Starmer’s final head-to-head debate with Rishi Sunak and increased scrutiny of his policies. A poll of 2,092 adults by Savanta for The Telegraph, conducted between Wednesday and Thursday, saw the firm record the lowest Labour support since January 2022 as the gap between Labour and the Conservatives dropped to 17 percentage points.” – Sunday Telegraph
>Today: ToryDiary: One bad election result should not change Conservative minds about electoral reform
“Yet the lockdown cannot be wished away. It squats like a poisonous toad in the middle of every policy discussion. We edge carefully around it. We affect not to see it. Yet there it is, wart-covered and malign, regarding us with cold, protuberant eyes. Take any issue you like. Education? The number of children “persistently absent” from school has surged since before the lockdown. The economy? Growth remains sluggish because people haven’t returned to work. It makes life tougher in lots of small ways. Suitcases are slow to reach airport carousels because there are fewer baggage handlers. Trains run less punctually because there are fewer railwaymen. A secondary market has developed in dates for driving tests.” – Daniel Hannan, Sunday Telegraph
“The party really does have accomplishments to boast of, though it’s been curiously reluctant to do so. There has been much discussion recently of the rise in economic inactivity. But this is in the context of an incredibly impressive record of employment and job creation. The reforms brought in by Michael Gove have radically improved the schools system, with the introduction of synthetic phonics sending us soaring up the literacy league tables. There’s more. We have a world-class record on decarbonisation and renewables deployment. Street crime has fallen hugely. British research arguably saved the most lives globally during the pandemic — and our vaccine programme was genuinely world-leading. We film the world’s biggest movies here, and make many of the biggest computer games. Rather than neglecting the NHS, the Conservatives have poured in all the money promised on that Brexit bus and more, with record numbers of doctors, nurses and other staff.” – Robert Colvile, Sunday Times