Labour

JEREMY Corbyn's popularity is in crisis and the Labour leader goes down like a "plate of warm sick" in the party's heartlands outside London, according to a top pollster. "Jeremy Corbyn is a phenomenon whose popularity seems confined to university graduates, in particular in the south of England," the chairman of polling firm Savanta ComRes, Andrew Hawkins, said in an interview with The Sun. According to a poll by YouGov for The Times last week, the Labour leader was set to lose the election with only 211 seats but a series of surveys over the weekend predicted a Labour was putting a squeeze on Boris Johnson's lead. A poll by BMG Research for the Independent on Saturday had Mr Corbyn jumping ahead by 5 points to 33 per cent, leaving only six points of wiggle room between the two parties. Mr Hawkins said his analysis still had Mr Johnson ahead of Mr Corbyn. "In seats far-flung from London and the south-east traditional Labour seats, Jeremy Corbyn goes down like a warm plate of sick," he … [Read more...] about Jeremy Corbyn ‘goes down like a plate of warm sick’ in traditional Labour areas that voted for Brexit

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has pledged to ‘roll back’ Labour’s disastrous PFI hospital schemes to free up resources for the front line. Mr Hancock said a new Tory government would establish a dedicated unit within the Department of Health to pore over the details of dozens of PFI deals – or Private Finance Initiatives – signed by Labour. The schemes have left hospitals having to pay out more than £2billion a year to private firms. Health secretary Matt Hancock, right, announced that the government would set up a unit to look into PFI deals while visiting the Countess of Chester hospital He added: ‘The Conservatives are clear. PFI was a disaster and should never have been undertaken on the scale it was. So we will review and cancel the deals where possible – and are building 40 new hospitals without a single penny of funding by PFI.’ PFI was championed by Gordon Brown as a way of funding new schools and hospitals without adding to … [Read more...] about Matt Hancock vows to axe Labour’s PFI hospital schemes to free up resources for frontline medical staff

Labour is to promise free, healthy breakfasts for all primary-age children as part of a multibillion pound plan to “poverty-proof” England’s schools and boost educational standards. The shadow education secretary, Angela Rayner, will on Thursday pledge to recruit 20,000 more teachers, cap secondary class sizes at 30, and spend £7bn on repairs and upgrades to England’s crumbling school buildings. As well as expanding the provision of free breakfasts to all primary schools across England to help combat hunger, Labour would also pilot free breakfasts in secondary schools and introduce a new programme of “extended schools”, in the evenings and the summer holidays, to help all children to access activities such as sport. “Rising child poverty under the Tories is an absolute scandal, and it is a disgrace that their plans will push it to a 60-year high if they win this election. “Labour will tackle child poverty while driving up standards … [Read more...] about Free breakfasts to form part of Labour plan to ‘poverty-proof’ schools

Labour has branded Russian hackers' alleged involvement with the leaked NHS 'for sale' dossier as a "ridiculous distraction". It comes amid claims the 451-page unredacted report were linked to a Russian fake news campaign. At a press conference last week, Labour said the document was proof of a Tory plot to sell off the NHS. The official papers exposed the full scale of Donald Trump ’s wish-list as Britain goes begging for a post-Brexit deal. The uncensored dossier revealed the US wants “total market access” to all sectors of the NHS after the UK leaves the EU. Speaking to Kay Burley on Sky News this morning, Labour's Laura Pidcock said claims the documents were leaked by Russia is a "massive distraction". Kay Burley continued to speculate the dossier was leaked by Russia and asked Ms Pidcock if she knew where the documents came from. The Labour candidate replied: "Honestly, this is absolutely ridiculous. I am telling you these are official government documents." … [Read more...] about Labour blast links between NHS dossier and Russia as ‘ridiculous distraction’

More than 40 celebrities, including linguist Noam Chomsky, actor Steve Coogan and poet Kate Tempest, are backing Jeremy Corbyn for prime minister. The famous faces have signed a letter supporting the Labour Party ahead of the General Election next week. It states Mr Corbyn's leadership "offers a transformative plan that prioritises the needs of people and the planet over private profit and the vested interests of a few". Other leading cultural figures on the list include film directors Mike Leigh and Ken Loach, the band Massive Attack and musician Roger Waters. "We are alarmed by the global rise of far-right nationalism and the authoritarian turn taken by many governments following the global financial crash of 2008," the letter states. "We are shamed by extreme levels of inequality, neglect and environmental impoverishment resulting from decades of neoliberalism, in Britain and across the world. "We are inspired by growing movements, from Chile to Lebanon and beyond, calling for … [Read more...] about 40 celebrities write open letter backing Labour in the election – see the list