Labour’s Sir Keir given tulips and kiss on cheek while meeting voters in Cumbria
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer spoke to voters in Cumbria about the cost-of-living crisis during a visit before next week’s local elections.
He spent Thursday morning in Workington, where voters will soon be going to the polls to select councillors for the new unitary authority of Cumberland.
He walked through the town centre with Labour council candidates Barbara Cannon and Mark Fryer, with many voters stopping him to chat about issues including the rising cost of living.
Speaking to the media, Sir Keir said: “Right now, people are really concerned about their energy bills, their fuel bills, their food bills all going up, their wages not going up and, if you can believe it, the Government has chosen this moment, this week, to impose new tax on them – national insurance tax.
“So, people will be looking at their pay slip this week and thinking, ‘I can’t afford my bills and the Government is now taking even more money from me in tax’.
“I think, if anything, it demonstrates the Government is totally out of touch with the concerns of working people across the country.”
He added: “What I want to see is a windfall tax on oil and gas companies in the North Sea.
“They made more money than they were expecting because of the high global prices and what we, the Labour party, say is windfall tax on that – use it directly to pay the energy bills of people who are struggling, particularly those that are struggling most, by up to £600, so it’s a practical plan on the table.
“Also, we say, we wouldn’t introduce this tax hike that the Government has imposed this week.
“So, I’m afraid the Government has got it completely wrong. We’ve got a practical plan and what I want is an emergency budget so we can actually do something to help people struggling with their bills.”
One woman handed Sir Keir a bunch of red tulips and told him “good luck with everything”, while a Labour campaigner beckoned him over before planting a kiss on his cheek.
A Labour supporter on a mobility scooter rode up to the politician and stopped in front of him, saying: “I’m not going to ram raid the next Prime Minister!”
Sir Keir, who popped into Holland and Barrett to buy vitamins, also learnt about the traditional Uppies and Downies ball game played in the area.
Mr Fryer, a previous champion, showed him a newspaper with pictures of the sport, which sees two halves of the town compete to get a ball to their end of town.
The game, which has no rules, has been played in Workington for centuries.
Mr Fryer’s nephew Dan, who won the most recent game, met Sir Keir and showed him the winning ball before posing for photos.
Published: by Radio NewsHub