Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch clashed fiercely at Prime Minister's Questions over welfare reform, migration policy and the state of the economy. The exchanges reflected deepening political divisions ahead of what many expect to be a pivotal period in British politics.
Starmer defended his government's record, citing OECD forecasts showing UK growth up and inflation down. He highlighted that net migration, which reached nearly a million under the previous Conservative government, has fallen by 82 percent, and the asylum backlog is down 46 percent.
The Prime Minister pointed to what he called the fastest reduction in NHS waiting times in the history of the health service, along with free school meals, free breakfast clubs, free childcare, and lifting half a million children out of poverty as key achievements.
Badenoch hit back with a sharp attack, declaring that unemployment has risen every single month since Labour came to office. She accused Starmer of being a disappearing PM, referencing the controversy over his use of disappearing WhatsApp messages.
The Conservative leader proposed what she called a conservative solution of benefits built down, taxes down and growth up. She referenced former PM Tony Blair's suggestion that Labour should accept the Conservative offer to work together on welfare reform.
Starmer responded by pointing to the introduction of bereavement leave from day one of employment, asking anyone who has lost a loved one how important such a right is. He rejected Conservative advice on welfare, saying they introduced a broken system and put the bill through the roof.
The combative session underscored the growing political pressure on Starmer from multiple fronts, including the Henry Novak policing controversy, the Al-Fayed abuse scandal, and internal party tensions revealed by leaked messages from senior ministers expressing frustration with his leadership.