Speaking in separate interviews hosted by the Sun newspaper that included questions from a watching audience, Rishi Sunak and Starmer underwent at times difficult interrogations, including over migration and the NHS.
Both party leaders were quick to dismiss the records of their predecessors. Rishi Sunak said Liz Truss's economic policy was badly mistaken, and a Starmer-led government would create similar fiscal instability.
Starmer meanwhile gave his fullest answer yet as to why he had endorsed Corbyn in the 2019 election when he did not believe in him, and why he did not quit to serve on the backbenches as some colleagues had.
"Everybody then took a decision about what they did, how we dealt with this," he said. "I felt that on issues such as Brexit, which I thought were going to define us for decades to come, leaders are temporary, but political parties are permanent, but it was important to have a voice in the shadow cabinet.
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