The Conservatives have pledged to 'reverse the disastrous decisions' Keir Starmer has made in office as they lay out their plans for government. Kemi Badenoch's party vowed on Sunday to quit the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), triple stop-and-search and restart drilling in the North Sea under an agenda presented in their 'alternative King's Speech'.
Conservative Legislative Agenda
The Conservatives have committed to bringing forward 16 bills targeting welfare, immigration, crime, energy and defence reforms. With Sir Keir struggling to gain backbench support for his legislative programme, Mrs Badenoch said that where Britons have experienced 'the painful reality of an opposition entering government without a plan', she would not 'make that same mistake'. She stated that the proposals show her 'renewed' Conservative Party – which outperformed expectations at last week's local elections – is 'coming back with a plan to deliver'.
Labour's Turmoil
This followed a tumultuous weekend for Sir Keir, who was left clinging to power after overseeing a catastrophic set of election results for Labour. On Friday he admitted voters were disappointed by 'the pace of change' under Labour. The government has seen much of its flagship legislation face severe delays or drastic rewrites. The Hillsborough Law, for example – set out in Labour's manifesto – has still not passed. Labour MP Ian Byrne slammed No10 for lacking the 'political courage' needed to deliver the law, which would compel public servants to tell the truth and co-operate with disaster inquiries.
Conservative Proposals
Mrs Badenoch said her laws would reverse Labour's 'disastrous' course and 'rectify the mistakes of previous Conservative governments'. Under their Get Britain Drilling Bill, the Tories plan to reduce legal obstacles which prevent oil and gas projects being approved, protecting against energy price shocks. Commenting on plans to clamp down on illegal migration, shadow home secretary Chris Philp said Britain's membership of the ECHR and the Human Rights Act have 'protected everyone except the British public'. He said the Take Back Our Streets Bill – which will triple stop-and-search, deploy 10,000 extra officers and roll out facial recognition technology – would reverse 'damage' done by Labour.
At the King's Speech on Wednesday, the Labour Party will outline the laws it will bring forward in the next parliamentary session.
