Sunak claims UK will be less safe under Labour in pre-election speech

Rishi Sunak has claimed that Britain would be less safe if Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer wins this year’s general election, as he put a “better the devil you know” strategy at the heart of his campaign pitch.

In a nakedly electioneering speech, the UK prime minister claimed that Britain was facing “the most dangerous times we have seen since the cold war” and that Starmer would be weak in the face of its adversaries.

Sunak was attempting to regain some momentum after this month’s hammering in local elections for his Conservative party, ahead of a national poll that he confirmed would happen “in the second half of this year”.

The prime minister has been trying — and so far failing — to find a campaign message that resonates with the public: opinion polls stubbornly put the Tories 20 points behind Labour.

The prime minister claimed last year at the Conservative conference in Manchester that he was “the change” candidate at the election despite the party’s 14 years in government; now he is presenting himself as a strong figure in perilous times.

Previously Sunak had presented himself as a technocratic prime minister, fixing intractable problems and sorting out the economic mess bequeathed by his predecessor Liz Truss.

His latest argument is that Britain is facing a period of high danger, including from an “axis” of authoritarian powers such as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.

Asked whether he was claiming that Britain would be less safe under Starmer and he was making a “better the devil you know” argument, Sunak said: “In a word, yes.”

Sunak claimed in a speech at the Policy Exchange think-tank that Labour kept on talking about past Tory failings — including Truss’s disastrous 49-day premiership in 2022 — rather than addressing the future.

He claimed Starmer and his team thought they could “depress their way to victory” by talking down the Conservatives’ record in office, while failing to present an optimistic vision in its place.

He also repeatedly cited his recent commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030 — a target that lies beyond the next two general elections — and Starmer’s failure to commit to the same target.

“I believe this is the most dangerous times we have faced for generations,” Sunak said. “There’s no way you can keep the country safe . . . unless you’re prepared to invest in our defence.” He said Vladimir Putin would be emboldened by Starmer’s position.

After the speech, Starmer hit back, saying: “I know first hand the importance of national security, which is why I’ve made such a commitment to the national security of our country.”

He stressed the UK would “not be less safe under a Labour government” and said: “This government talks about national security. But what’s its record? It’s hollowed out our armed forces, it’s wasted billions of pounds on procurement and doesn’t have a credible plan for the future.”

Sunak also repeated his warning that he would be prepared to ignore rulings from the European Court of Human Rights in order to deport some asylum seekers to Rwanda.

“If the Strasbourg court makes me choose between the ECHR and this country’s security, I will choose our country’s security every single time,” he said.

The prime minister portrayed Starmer as a leader who was unable to tackle the dangers or grasp the “transformational” opportunities of the next five years, including those offered by new technology and artificial intelligence.

Asked about Starmer’s recent welcoming of the defection of Tory MP Natalie Elphicke to Labour — a move that was strongly criticised by some Labour MPs — Sunak said: “It says less about her and more about him.

“He is clearly and utterly unprincipled — someone who went from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke. You can’t trust what the guy says.”

Meanwhile, Sunak said he would welcome Boris Johnson joining the Tory election campaign, saying the party was “a broad church united by a set of values”.

Labour said: “Rishi Sunak’s seventh reset in 18 months is just another desperate attempt to hide from the appalling record of this failed Tory government.

“After 14 years of leaving the country less secure at home and abroad, the Tories have forfeited the right to talk about security.”