We've got problems but people WILL feel better off

KEIR Starmer today promises he will not plunge Britain into another round of austerity to fix the mess left by the Tories.

- LIZZY BUCHAN and MIKEY SMITH

He and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have been warning that next month's Budget will be "painful", sparking fears of spending cuts.

But the Prime Minister said he would give people hope for a "changed Britain" after gloomy tidings of tough choices to come.

And the former head of the Crown Prosecution Service vowed there would be no more austerity.

"I was running a public service when the coalition government went down the austerity route," Mr Starmer said. "It did a huge amount of damage to our public services and we are still feeling the damage even now. So we are not going down the road of austerity."

Speaking at Downing Street on the eve of the Labour conference, the PM refused to say if he would heed union calls for a wealth tax.

But he added: "I'm acutely aware that working people have already paid a lot in extra taxes under the last government and that we need to create the conditions for our economy to grow and for investors to put their money in our economy."

CRITICAL

Mr Starmer said he had given a "raw and honest assessment" of the state of the country but he would use his speech in Liverpool to spell out how people will feel better off by the next election.

Labour's key commitments on driving up living standards, fixing the NHS, clean energy, offering opportunities to young people and tackling crime are top of his agenda.

"This would be a massively different and better country, real sunny uplands stuff," he said."

"But to get there we have to do the tough thing to start with."

The PM said the state of the NHS was one of the worst problems in his in-tray, pointing to this month's damning report by Lord Darzi which found the health service was in a "critical condition".

"It's shocking" Mr Starmer said.