'We are giving up a Labour seat', Keir Starmer says after 'bumpy' week in Rochdale
16.02.2024 - 10:59
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Sir Keir Starmer says he has done something no other leader of the Labour Party has ever done before by 'giving up a Labour seat' in Rochdale. But the Labour leader fell short of saying that he acted quickly enough over comments made by its by-election candidate.
The party pulled its support for Azhar Ali who apologised for 'deeply offensive' comments he made about Israel. However, the Lancashire Labour leader, who has now been suspended by the party, will still appear next to the Labour logo on the ballot paper.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast after winning two by-elections elsewhere this morning (February 16), Sir Keir acknowledged the last week had been 'bumpy'. But the leader insisted he was prepared to make 'ruthless' decisions as he seeks to show Labour is a changed party.
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He said: “I did something that no leader of the Labour party has ever done before, which is to remove a candidate in a by-election where they cannot be replaced, because I was so determined to take decisive action in relation to antisemitism.”
Asked whether it was done quickly enough, he said: “It was done within days.” He added: “We are giving up a Labour seat. That’s the right thing to do. But what it shows is, when there’s tough decisions to be made, I take those decisions. That’s what I’ve been doing for four years. Taking tough and ruthless decisions to change this party. I’ve taken two tough and ruthless decisions in the last 10 days.
“Has it been bumpy? Yes, of course it’s been bumpy, but: ‘Were they the right decisions?’ is the question I asked myself. They were the right decisions.”
When pressed by reporters on whether he could be confident there are no other candidates who