Rayner warns Labour 'running out of time' under Starmer and brands migration rules 'un-British' in furious attack on PM
The former deputy leader urged the party to change direction or face defeat at the ballot box in her biggest challenge to Sir Keir Starmer since stepping down from the Government
Angela Rayner has warned Labour is “running out of time” under Sir Keir Starmer and branded his migration reforms “un-British” in her strongest attack on the Prime Minister to date.
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The former deputy leader also warned Labour is starting to represent “the Establishment” rather than “working people” under its current leadership.
In her biggest challenge to Sir Keir since resigning as Deputy Leader, Ms Rayner urged the party to change direction or face defeat at the ballot box.
“As a party and a movement, we cannot hide. We cannot just go through the motions in the face of decline,” she said during an event held by Mainstream, a left-wing think tank.
Ms Rayner added: "There’s no safe ground for us, and we’re running out of time. The change that people wanted so desperately to see needs to be seen.
"It needs to be felt, and we have to show that it’s a Labour government that will deliver it, and many of you in this room will deliver that for us. Our party is your party.
"And we have to come together in the face of division of hate and make sure that the Labour Party represents the ordinary working people of this country. And I’m in there with you, so I can’t wait to get involved with you."
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She warned of a potential "breach of trust" with voters over plans to make it harder for migrants to stay in the UK, branding the proposals “un-British”.
Legal migrants could have to wait up to 20 years before they can settle permanently under the plans.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has previously said the change is needed to avoid a "drain on public finances".
Ms Rayner said: “Many people came here to Britain on the understanding that if they’ve worked in the sectors where we needed them, obeyed the law and paid their taxes, that they could stay.
“If we suddenly change that, it pulls the rug from under those that have planned their lives and commitments and they’re contributing to our economy and to our society.“That would not just be bad policy, but a breach of trust.”
Ms Rayner was forced to resign as Deputy Prime Minister in September following a row over her underpayment of stamp duty on a new property.
The Labour MP has remained relatively quiet since stepping down from the Cabinet but last night vowed to be more vocal in her attacks.
She is still largely seen as a potential successor to Sir Keir - whose popularity continues to plunge amid record-low approval ratings.
Andy Burnham, who is also seen as a frontrunner to replace Sir Keir as Labour leader, said today he understands "the frustration people feel" after Ms Rayner said the Labour Party is "running out of time" to deliver change, saying “I know where she’s coming from”.
Cabinet office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said he agreed with Ms Rayner that Labour is going "through the motions in the face of decline" as pressure mounts on the Prime Minister.
“I get the sense that that frustration is actually what is running through her remarks. It absolutely runs through every Government minister as well,” he told Sky News.