Prime Minister Keir Starmer has made a defiant pledge to lead the Labour Party into the next general election, forcefully dismissing a week of intense speculation over his future.
In an exclusive interview with the Mirror in Downing Street on Monday, the PM hit out at what he called 'time-wasting' internal party rows, insisting that his sole focus is on tackling the cost of living pressures that are clobbering families across the UK.
Ending the 'Wasted' Speculation
The Prime Minister's comments come after a torrid week for the Government, which saw a bitter briefing war erupt over alleged threats to his leadership. This internal conflict dismayed Labour MPs and pushed party infighting to the top of the news agenda.
When asked directly if he would lead Labour into the next election, Starmer's response was unequivocal: "Yes, I will." He added, "Let me be really clear - every minute that's not spent talking about and dealing with the cost of living is a minute wasted of the political work of this Government."
He emphasised that his response to the previous week's turmoil was to remain "utterly focused" on the issue that matters most to the public. "I'm very conscious of the fact that people want to get on in life, they want to progress, they want more money in their pocket to do the things that matter to them," Starmer stated.
A Make-or-Break Budget Looms
The Prime Minister's pledge arrives just ahead of a critical Budget set for next week, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves scrambling to address a significant black hole in the public finances.
In a dramatic twist, it recently emerged that Reeves abandoned a plan to raise income tax—a move that would have breached a key Labour manifesto commitment—after better-than-expected economic forecasts. This decision, however, triggered turmoil in the markets.
Starmer promised that the upcoming financial statement would be "a Labour Budget with Labour values right through it" and assured voters they would feel better off by the end of the current Parliament.
Practical Measures to Ease the Squeeze
The Government is understood to be preparing several announcements designed to put more cash in people's pockets ahead of the Budget.
It is expected that prescription charges will be frozen for another year, maintaining the cost at £9.90 per item for millions in England. The PM confirmed, "We've had a freeze in place, which is really important, and you can expect more on that in the coming days."
Furthermore, the rollout of free breakfast clubs for primary schools will be expanded, with a specific focus on the most deprived areas. Starmer hailed the initiative as a "game changer" for children's ability to learn and a practical help for parents. "For parents and carers... being able to drop off early and get to work earlier does mean more income," he said, noting that the extra few hundred pounds can make a significant difference for struggling families.
Drawing on his own childhood experiences, the Prime Minister shared a personal connection to the issue: "When I was growing up, we didn't have enough money, and sometimes we couldn't pay the bills. I know what it feels like to be sitting around your kitchen table worrying about that."
Defending the Asylum Overhaul and Taking on Reform
Beyond economic concerns, the interview also touched on the Government's newly unveiled hardline plans to overhaul the asylum system, which have caused alarm among some Labour MPs.
Starmer defended the blueprint, stating that the Government had inherited a "broken asylum system" that needed to be fixed to rebuild public confidence. "We need to stop people arriving who shouldn't be here, and we need to return those who are found not to be genuine refugees," he said.
He was also keen to distance his party's approach from the "toxic division" of Nigel Farage's Reform UK, accusing them of having no serious answers. "They feed off grievance," Starmer asserted. "They want problems to persist... That path is built on grievance... they are peddlers of snake oil."
In closing, the Prime Minister framed the country's future as a choice between his government's path of "patriotic national renewal" focused on the cost of living, or the "toxic division" offered by his rivals.
