Keir Starmer torn apart on GB News with ‘humiliating’ U-turn verdict | TV & Radio | Showbiz & TV
The Prime Minister has now faced a huge blow to his authority after being forced to abandon a key part of his welfare reforms in the face of a mass rebellion by Labour MPs. GB News has now waded in on the conversation, with one guest describing the situation as “a humiliation.” Sir Keir Starmer got rid of cuts to disability benefits that had prompted MPs to rebel, as Labour whips concluded that the Government risked losing a vote in the Commons. Rachel Reeves now has a fiscal hole to fill, and in the meantime, the Government has pitted its own MPs against each other and climbed down on the major part of reform.
Despite the bill passing relatively easily, it will likely face more opposition next week and throughout its passage through Parliament. The entire process has caused a wave of backlash, with GB News guest Fraser Myers saying Starmerโs climbdown on welfare reform shows “Labour canโt take tough decisions.”
He said, “Well, this isnโt just a U-turn from Keir Starmer โ itโs a humiliation. These reforms are pretty urgent. There are so many people languishing in this country on disability benefits when they could be productive and working.”
Fraser added, “It is entirely based on the policy changes. The problem is that the government needs to reform this. But now there is no chance of this being reformed. This Government came in and said it was going to bring change, it was going to be a reforming Government.
“We wonder what other tough decisions will be reversed at the first sight of a backbench rebellion. The rebels know that they can force the Government to climb down now.”
Labour MPs in the Commons have had their own say and said the governmentโs handling of the reforms was โcrazyโ. Left-wing Labour MP Paula Barker labelled it an โincoherent and shambolicโ retreat, voicing that it was โthe most unedifying spectacle I have ever seenโ.
Liz Kendall insists that the government โmust not and will not duckโ reform of benefits. Backbencher Maria Tidball said the reform โwould exclude eligibility for those who cannot put on their underwear, prosthetic limbs or shoes without supportโ.