Sir Keir Starmer explains why Sunderland voters should back Labour at the next election

Sir Keir was visiting Southwick's Clearly Drinks to tour the plant and meet staff

Transcript

00:00 Ski Starmer you're here in Sunderland today. Why should the people of Wearside vote for you?

00:05 Because they were very badly let down by Boris Johnson who promised the earth

00:09 and delivered nothing. Secondly because the Labour Party is a changed Labour

00:13 Party very different to the Labour Party that stood for election in 2019. We are

00:18 the party that is pro business, we will work with business, we have got a plan to

00:24 grow our economy, to build across Britain, to ensure we've got the infrastructure

00:29 that we need and to raise living standards across Sunderland and across

00:33 the whole region. So we have a positive plan for the future being put forward by

00:37 a changed Labour Party. What they were offered at the last election were

00:41 promises which Boris Johnson never intended to keep. In my view that's

00:45 unforgivable. Sunderland became quite a poster child for the Brexit issue on the

00:51 night of the vote. Polls suggest that people are moving more towards

00:56 reunion, reunification with the EU. Labour seem to be dragging their feet in it. Are

01:01 you behind the curve? No we have taken a vote in this country to leave the EU and we

01:06 have left. There is no case for rejoining the EU. But what I think people are

01:11 frustrated about is that what we've got, the deal the government has negotiated

01:16 isn't good enough for them and businesses are frustrated and that's

01:19 been, the cost of that is in jobs, in the cost it is to take things across

01:25 borders. We have to address that. But I would also say that there was another

01:30 element to the Brexit vote. It was many many people saying you're not hearing us,

01:34 you're not listening to what we have to say. And I think it's very important that

01:39 we recognise that as a changed Labour Party we have welded our priorities to

01:45 the priorities of people in places like Sunderland to make sure that we are

01:49 facing the voters, not talking to ourselves as a party. And that's why I'm

01:53 very proud to put forward our plan for a decade of national renewal which will

01:57 mean raised living standards, better jobs, secure jobs and future of jobs in places

02:02 like Sunderland and across the region.