General election latest: Sunak denies he's planning to flee to US - as outgoing Tory MP backs Reform to take her seat (2024)

Today has brought news of four Labour MPs announcing they won't be standing for election on 4 July.

John Spellar, MP for Smethwick and Oldbury; Barbara Keeley of Worsley and Eccles South; Kevin Brennan, from Cardiff West; and Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma are all to stand down.

They have all said they will support Labour's campaign.

The party's final deadline for candidate selections is 4 June - a month before voters head to the polls.

Our political editor Beth Rigby is talking us through the significance of tonight's news that former Tory MP Lucy Allan has been suspended from the party - after backing Reform UK.

She says: "Telford was where Boris Johnson set up, or kicked off the Conservative manifesto in 2019.

"[Lucy Allan] is backing Reform to win her Telford seat, and she's been suspended from the Conservative Party.

"It seems however hard Rishi Sunak tries to turn [the election] into a policy debate about the ideas he has for the country - the bold plan as he would put it - he just keeps getting knocked on to his heels by what's going on in the Conservative Party.

"Lots of MPs were very unhappy he called the election, so many standing down.

"There was a leaked document today criticising MPs about how they are fronting up the campaign (read more here).

"That was redacted by Conservative campaign headquarters.

"And then Lucy Allan backing Reform and being suspended from the party."

Beth says the problem with this is that the public are seeing Rishi Sunak as unable to get his own team "off the bench for him".

She adds: "He can't seem to get on a front foot."

Richard Tice, the leader of Reform UK, has hinted the party may be able to "tempt" an outgoing Tory MP to "stand nearby" after she publicly backed his party.

Lucy Allan has backed a Reform candidate to win her Telford seat. She had already announced she wouldn't be standing herself, but has now been suspended by the Tory party (see 17.04 post).

He told Sky News: "Lucy Allan recognises that Reform is the party of common sense policies. And the policies that can get our country growing again, that can raise wages, that can freeze immigration, that can get to zero waiting lists.

"Her endorsem*nt of our great candidate in the constituency of Telford after she steps down is vindication and verification of that.

"We're absolutely thrilled to bits.

"There's still a few days to go (before candidates must be confirmed) - we might even tempt her to stand nearby, who knows?"

Asked about the Tory argument that a vote for Reform UK is a vote for Sir Keir Starmer, Mr Tice says this is "absolute nonsense".

"If you vote Tory - you get Labour," he says, pointing to recent defections in the party.

"They're both two sides of socialism, the high taxes, low growth and mass immigration that puts huge pressure - unfair pressure - on housing."

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has denied he will flee to California if he loses the election in July, as had been claimed by a Tory peer.

Lord Goldsmith had made the suggestion, but Mr Sunak says he hasn't spoken to the peer in a "very long time".

Mr Sunak said: "I am surprised that Lord Goldsmith, who I don't think I have spoken to in a very long time, seems to have some intimate knowledge of my family's arrangements.

"But no, of course not. My kids are at school, this is my home, and as I said earlier my football team (Southampton) has got promoted to the Premier League, so I intend to spend many more happy occasions in St Mary's watching them."

Sunak intends to stay for 'full term'

He added: "I was born and brought up in Southampton, I was raised with a very strong ethic of service to one's community.

"That is what I believe, that is what I have always done, that is why I got into politics, that is why I became a member of parliament and that is what I will continue to do."

Pressed on whether he would stay on for the whole term, Mr Sunak added: "That is what I am here to do.

"I mean, that is obviously subject to my constituents giving me the honour of continuing to represent them."

By Ashna Hurynag, news correspondent

It's John Swinney's three-week anniversary of his premiership.

But it's campaigning over celebrating for him. There's time for little else, as the relentlessness of the next few weeks sets in.

Scotland's first minister is keen to be seen to steady the ship, while providing hope for a better future under the SNP.

He was joined by some 50 supporters in Dumfries today - the rain just about holding off until after the group had safely taken shelter in a community centre.

This marginal seat held by the outgoing Scotland Secretary Alister Jack is, as the SNP see it, up for grabs.

With just 2,000 votes in it - they could steal it from the Conservatives.

They're quick to point out that in every Conservative seat in Scotland, they're the key challengers.

But there's an internal hangover bearing some weight on Swinney's actions - the SNP leader has chosen to stand by his former cabinet colleague Michael Matheson.

Last week, a parliamentary committee overseeing political conduct recommended the former health secretary should be fined and suspended after racking up an almost £11,000 data bill on his ministerial iPad using it to watch football.

But Swinney was unwavering today, sticking to the message that the SNP are the "challengers" in key Conservative seats where Labour doesn't have a look in.

They're hoping to capitalise on the disillusionment with the Tories, and remind voters why - in their view - the SNP is the only party that will make Scottish voices heard in London.

Our conversation with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer then turns personal, discussing the difficulties of his youth - and how that has shaped his politics.

He tellsBeth Rigby: "Alot of my formative years were about issues like my mum being very ill, very personal.

"I spent many hours in high dependency units with my mum, not knowing whether she was going to make it through. As a teenager I found that really hard.

"I found it really, really hard and having to go to school the next day, trying to carry that inside me, that was really hard.

"I wouldn't normally put that out there. I think most families probably wouldn't. But it did form me."

Sir Keir admits the idea of talking about it on national TV used to be "really difficult" for him.

Beth mentions that his sister Kate had said: "I've always been quite open about my feelings; Keir's good at most things, but not that."

Sir Keir says: "I think she's probably spot on."

Turning to his dad, he says: "I think I am different to my dad. And I think anybody who knows me would be clear about that."

The Labour leader has spoken before about his dad being emotionally distant when he was growing up, but says he thinks he "channelled all of his emotion into his support for my mum".

"He put everything into supporting my mum, and he didn't have the emotional space, I don't think for anything else and for us as children."

Not talking to his father about it before he died is "one of the things I regret", he adds.

The conversation with Sir Keir Starmer then turns to broken promises, with Beth Rigby asking why he won't acknowledge some pledges he's abandoned since running to be Labour leader in 2020.

He insists most of the promises he made "are still in place".

"They're the building blocks of what we've now put in place. Some of them have changed and this is an issue that's important because the reason they've changed is because we can't afford to do them any more.

"I said that we should abolish tuition fees," he recalls, but says "it's not possible" now because of the damage done to the economy.

"I think it's more important to stand in front of the electorate and say 'I'm sorry, I can't now afford what I said before because of the damage being done to the economy'.

"What I'm saying to the electorate is this: I'm going to tell you in advance of the election what I don't think we can afford to do.

"I'm not going to tell you that you can have everything and then break a promise after the election.

"I'm going to level with you now. There are some things that we now can't afford because of the damage done to the economy."

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has urged people to "look at my record" after being asked whether members of the public can trust him.

Sir Keir has been criticised for abandoning a number of pledges he made when competing for the Labour leadership, a criticism he has dismissed as being down to circ*mstance.

But our political editor Beth Rigby asked if there is a trust gap between the Labour leader and voters.

He said: "The most important thing is to look at the record of the individual. In my case, my record at the Crown Prosecution Service.

"I arrived there and said we need to reform. I arrived there and said we've got to drive up conviction rates for rape and change the way we deal with violence [against women and girls].

"We delivered all that. I said we had to change the way we deal with victims and we delivered.

"I went to Northern Ireland and said we would change the police service in Northern Ireland to make sure that both communities had respect.

"And I changed the Labour Party."

We've just been hearing from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is in Buckinghamshire today as the general election campaign heats up.

In a speech to party supporters, he asked the British public to answer one question: "Who do you trust?"

He repeated his attack on Labour that the party will take the country "back to square one", and put up people's taxes.

Mr Sunak claimed that the UK would have a "secure future" under the Conservatives.

"While others want to threaten the security, the integrity of our borders, we've got a bold plan with Rwanda," he said.

"To make it crystal clear that if you come to your country illegally, you won't be able to stay. You'll be returned. That's how you create a deterrent."

Attacking the Labour Party, he said it wants the voters to believe "this election is a foregone conclusion" and appeared to suggest it was taking the public "for granted".

He said the Conservatives will fight "very hard" in this election, while Sir Keir Starmer had not offered "one single new idea" in a speech of his own earlier today.

"They've had 14 years to think about what they want to do, and they've got nothing to say about the future of our country," he said.

"And that is what we are going to show."

As we mentioned earlier, the Conservative MP for Telford, Lucy Allan, had publicly backed the Reform UK candidate in her constituency.

Ms Allan confirmed last year that she would not attempt to retain her seat.

Now, the Conservatives have confirmed she has been suspended from the party.

A spokesperson said: "Lucy Allan has been suspended from the Party with immediate effect.

"The people of Telford now have the chance to vote for a dedicated and hardworking new candidate who will put Telford first.

"A vote for Reform is a vote for Keir Starmer."

However, Ms Allan claims she quit.

She said: "I have resigned from the Conservative Party to support Alan Adams to be Telford's next MP.

"I have known Alan for many years and he is genuinely the best person for the job. I want the best for Telford and I can't just let the Labour candidate have a walkover."

As per our ever-updating list of MPs who are standing down, Ms Allan had a majority of 10,941: