Sir Keir Starmer has refused to rule out increasing employers’ national insurance contributions but insisted the government would keep its manifesto promises.
He told the BBC: “We were very clear in the manifesto that we wouldn’t be increasing tax on working people and we expressly said that that was income tax, that was NICs etc.”
The prime minister’s refusal comes after Rachel Reeves has been criticised for refusing to rule out a rise in employer national insurance contributions that could be announced at the Budget on 30 October.
Speaking at Monday’s International Investment Summit, the chancellor warned of tax rises to come at the event in just over two weeks’ time.
Ms Reeves said: “We will stick to the commitments we made in our manifesto.”
Institute for Fiscal Studies director Paul Johnson saying a hike in employer NI contributions would be a “straightforward breach” of the Labour manifesto.
Speaking to Times Radio, he added that the pledge would “almost certainly” have to be broken in some way if Labour wants to fill its public spending gap.
Key Points
- Starmer refuses to rule out rise in employers national insurance contributions
- Reeves criticised for possible employer national insurance tax hike
- Reeves pledges end of instability as she announces new National Wealth Fund
- Government will cap corporation tax at 25% for the rest of the Parliament
- Sir Keir takes a swipe at Boris Johnson at investment summit
What would you like to see announced in Rachel Reeves’ budget? Join The Independent Debate
10:37
Joe Middleton
As chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver Labour’s first Budget in 14 years, there is significant interest in the potential fiscal changes on the horizon.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has highlighted that the focus will be on “making people better off,” outlining three key priorities: improving living standards, strengthening the NHS, and rebuilding the country, particularly in terms of housing.
We would like to hear your thoughts on what you would like to see introduced in Reeves’ Budget. Should she focus on measures to support homeowners, such as the Freedom to Buy scheme? Or would you prefer a focus on closing tax loopholes, such as abolishing non-dom status, to ensure a fairer tax system?
Click on the link below to share your comments
David Cameron reveals Tories planned to sanction two Israeli ministers
10:28
Joe Middleton
The previous Tory government was preparing to sanction two Israeli ministers over comments encouraging blocking aid to Gaza, David Cameron has said.
Piling pressure on Labour to revive his plans, Lord Cameron said that before the general election he was “working up” sanctions on Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gevir as a way of putting “pressure on Netanyahu“ to act within international law.
Mr Smotrich was recently criticised for appearing to suggest it might be “just and moral” to withhold food aid from Gaza, while Mr Ben-Gvir has backed the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports
Watch: Keir Starmer refuses to rule out raising national insurance contributions
10:14
Joe Middleton
‘We do not pay reparations’: Starmer rejects slavery atonement bid ahead of Commonwealth summit
10:00
Joe Middleton
Sir Keir Starmer has ruled out the prospect of Britain paying slavery reparations as he prepares for a major Commonwealth summit - with the issue “not on the agenda”, according to Downing Street.
Asked for the Prime Minister’s view on paying compensation relating to Britain’s colonial past, a Downing Street spokesperson said on Monday: “We do not pay reparations.”
The question was put forward ahead of Sir Keir meeting the Commonwealth heads of government in Samoa on 21 October.
The matter of reparations has recently come into focus with Barbados prime minister Mia Mottley reiterating calls for Britain to atone for its past atrocities.
Our race correspondent Nadine White reports
Business chiefs urge Reeves to back Scotch whisky
09:44
Joe Middleton
Business leaders across Scotland are calling on Rachel Reeves to “back Scotch whisky” and cut alcohol duty.
Rachel Reeves has been urged to lower the duty placed on spirits after the previous government raised it by 10.1 per cent last year.
In a letter sent to the Treasury, the chancellor was told that last summer’s tax increase had a “damaging impact” on Scotland’s national drink.
It was signed by business leaders from organisations including the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, the Scottish Tourism Alliance, Scotland Food and Drink, UK Hospitality Scotland and the Institute of Directors and Prosper.
The group said a reduction on alcohol duty for Scottish whisky would “signal that Scotland is a competitive place to invest, would recognise the benefits of the sustainable employment for which the Scotch Whisky industry is renowned and would boost a central part of Labour’s ‘Brand Scotland’ vision”.
The government has been approached for comment.
What is the Labour national insurance row about?
09:29
Joe Middleton
Labour’s manifesto included a promise not to raise taxes on “working people”, including income tax, VAT and national insurance.
But the government has faced questions on whether the commitment not to raise national insurance covered employers’ contributions as well as those by employees.
At Monday’s investment summit chancellor Rachel Reeves refused to rule out hiking employers’ contributions in the October 30 Budget.
And today Sir Keir Starmer said Labour’s manifesto pledge only covered taxes on working people, further fueling speculation of a rise in national insurance contributions for employers.
Institute for Fiscal Studies director Paul Johnson saying a hike in employer NI contributions would be a “straightforward breach” of the Labour manifesto.
Jeremy Hunt, the shadow chancellor, posted on X: “It’s obvious to most people that raising national insurance would breach Labour’s manifesto pledge to … not raise national insurance!”
It's obvious to most people that raising National Insurance would breach Labour's manifesto pledge to...not raise National Insurance! https://t.co/KFj67bduPD
— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) October 14, 2024
PM says £550 million homes investment will help more people get on housing ladder
09:14
Joe Middleton
Sir Keir Starmer said £550 million of investment to build new homes would enable more people to get on the housing ladder.
Schroders, Man Group and Resonance announced new impact investment funds on Tuesday which will go into housebuilding.
“We’ve said as a government we’re going to fix the foundations, rebuild our country, and expressly saying ‘now is the time to back us’,” he told the BBC.
“Companies and investors are coming in today saying ‘here’s half a billion pounds’. We want to raise that, by the way, I want that to be up over £1 billion before too long.”
The money would fund construction across the country because “too many people”, especially the young, “want to get on the housing ladder because they know that owning your own home is sort of base camp for their aspirations in life”.
“They haven’t had that for many years because the last government failed.
Starmer refuses to rule out rise in employers national insurance contributions
08:55
Joe Middleton
The prime minister again declined to rule out increasing employers’ national insurance contributions but insisted the Government would keep its manifesto promises.
He told the BBC: “We were very clear in the manifesto that we wouldn’t be increasing tax on working people and we expressly said that that was income tax, that was NICs etc.”
He added: “It wasn’t just the manifesto, we said it repeatedly in the campaign and we intend to keep the promises that we made in our manifesto.
“So I’m not going to reveal to you the details of the Budget, you know that that’s not possible at this stage.
“What I will say is where we made promises in our manifesto, we will be keeping those promises.”
Starmer thinks weight loss drugs could help get people back to work
08:40
Joe Middleton
The prime minister is asked if weight loss drugs could play a part in helping get people back to work.
He responded: “I think these drugs could be very important for our economy and for health.”
Starmer praises success of investment summit
08:37
Joe Middleton
The prime minister said the investment summit on Tuesday was a huge success.
He said: “These are investors with a huge amount of capital to to invest, but can choose where they invested. We made the case that now is the time to invest in Britain, and yesterday we’re able to announce £63bn pounds of inward investment into Britian.
“But for viewers what that means is investment into projects that are secured jobs in every part of the country.”
Starmer appears on BBC Breakfast
08:33
Joe Middleton
The prime minister is now being interviewed outside Downing Street.
ICYMI: John Caudwell says Louise Haigh's P&O attack was 'politically stupid'
08:30
Joe Middleton
Pinned: Reeves criticised for possible employer national insurance tax hike
08:09
Albert Toth
Speculation that Labour is considering raising employer national insurance tax contributions has been renewed after Rachel Reeves refused to rule out the measure yesterday.
The hike would bring the levy up from its current flat rate of 13.8 per cent, with experts predicting it could raise around £17bn a year.
She said: “We are going to need to sort of close that gap between what government is spending and bringing in through tax receipts. But we are going to be a government that sticks to our manifesto commitments,” meaning not raising taxes on working people.
A Treasury source has also previously indicated that it is the view of the government that the move would be considered as a tax on business, and not working people, saying: “The commitments in the manifesto were clear and about protecting the incomes of working people.”
The Institute for Fiscal Studies’ Paul Johnson has called this into question, saying the move would be a “straightforward breach” of the Labour manifesto. However he added that it’s unlikely the party would be unable to avoid doing this in some way.
Shadow work and pensions secretary Mel Stride said it would be “absurd” for Labour to hike national insurance for employers and claim it was not a breach of the party’s manifesto.
Speaking to Sky News, he said Labour has “boxed themselves in” by “claiming they were not going to be a party that was going to have to put up taxes”.
ICYMI:
07:23
Jabed Ahmed
Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed the President of Cyprus to Downing Street, after the island played a central role in early efforts to get aid into war-torn Gaza.
Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides made a whistlestop visit to No 10 before he heads to the United Nations in New York, where he hopes to open talks aimed at ending the decades-long ethnic divide on the island.
A UN buffer zone extends across Cyprus, dividing the Greek south from the north-eastern portion of the island, which is administered by an ethnically Turkish government only recognised by Turkey.
As the two sat for the media at the start of their meeting, the Prime Minister said: “It is my privilege to welcome you here and it is fantastic we have got this opportunity to discuss issues of mutual interest, a long and very important history between our two countries.
“Both at the country to country level, but also at the people to people level.
“We have a very proud community here and it gives great strength to us as a country.”
Watch: Ex-Google chief says he was 'shocked' when Labour became party of growth
07:01
Jabed Ahmed
Alex Salmond: The man who taught me political journalism is a contact sport – well before Donald Trump
05:00
Albert Toth
The Independent’s political editor David Maddox and Whitehall editor Kate Devlin were Scottish politics reporters at the height of Alex Salmond’s powers. David writes about the political giant he knew with memories from Kate.
Full report: Rachel Reeves boosts big business as she caps corporation tax at 25% and woos investment in Britain
04:00
Jabed Ahmed
Watch back: Keir Starmer unveils AI investments at international summit
03:00
Albert Toth
Watch back Sir Keir Starmer’s speech to the International Investment Summit 2024 on Monday, 14 October.
Former Tory MP warns Robert Jenrick would ‘poison’ Conservative Party if he became leader
02:00
Archie Mitchell
Robert Jenrick would “poison” the Conservative Party and wants to go further to the right than Nigel Farage, an influential former Tory MP claimed.
In a damning assessment of the former immigration minister, Matthew Parris dubbed him a “slick, smooth-tongued salesman with all the attributes of a crowd-pleaser, except the ability to please a crowd”.
Kemi Badenoch faces backlash for ‘stigmatising’ autism
01:00
Kate Devlin
Conservative leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch has been accused of “stigmatising” autism after she endorsed a report that suggested people with the condition get “economic advantages and protections”.
The pamphlet, which Ms Badenoch launched, also claimed that they receive “better treatment or equipment at school”.
Minister ‘absolutely ready’ to engage with Elon Musk despite investment summit absence
Tuesday 15 October 2024 00:01
Archie Mitchell
The minister in charge of social media and digital technology has insisted he is “absolutely ready to engage” with Elon Musk, despite not having spoken to the world’s richest man since taking office in July.
Peter Kyle denied the Tesla chief had been snubbed by the UK government ahead of its inaugural international investment summit, to which Mr Musk was not invited.
Reeves warned national insurance hike would be ‘straightforward breach’ of manifesto
Monday 14 October 2024 23:00
Archie Mitchell
Rachel Reeves has been warned that hiking employer national insurance contributions would be “a straightforward breach” of the Labour manifesto.
The chancellor has been told by Paul Johnson, director of the influential Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), that the party said “very clearly” it would not make the change.
Exclusive: Brexit wine tax sparks call for consumers to pressure MPs
Monday 14 October 2024 22:00
Kate Devlin
Customers are being urged to “urgently” pressure MPs over a post-Brexit wine tax dubbed Rishi Sunak’s “sneaky Sauvignon surcharge”.
Major wine companies such as Majestic have asked customers to write to their member of parliament to highlight the issue before Rachel Reeves‘ Budget at the end of this month – to “get this ill-conceived policy stopped before it is too late”.
POLITICS EXPLAINED: Can Reform UK ever prove themselves to be serious politicians?
Monday 14 October 2024 21:27
Jabed Ahmed
Alex Salmond’s cause of death confirmed as heart attack, says Alba
Monday 14 October 2024 20:45
Jabed Ahmed
A post-mortem examination has confirmed Alex Salmond’s cause of death as a heart attack, the Alba Party has said.
Mr Salmond, who was Scotland’s first minister from 2007 until 2014, died suddenly in North Macedonia on Saturday aged 69.
The former first minister had made a speech at the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy Forum in the city of Ohrid before collapsing at lunch in a crowded room.
The Scottish and UK governments are working together to repatriate the ex-SNP leader’s body.
Conservative MP David Davis, who was a friend of Mr Salmond, called for the RAF to bring Mr Salmond’s body back to the UK.
The Alba Party, which Mr Salmond founded in 2021 after leaving the SNP, said it expected an update on his return on Monday evening.
Watch: David Davis chokes up in House of Commons remembering friend Alex Salmond
Monday 14 October 2024 18:37
Jabed Ahmed
Analysis: Rachel Reeves’ had no choice but to cap corporation tax
Monday 14 October 2024 17:14
David Maddox, Political Editor
Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves had pinned their success on achieving economic growth in the UK. But critics have said that outside planning reforms there has been little on offer for businesses and more to be worried about especially with increased workers rights.
With the the chief executives of many of the world’s biggest businesses in London Ms Reeves had to give a concrete promise about what “stability” means for them and how it makes Britain a good place to invest.
By capping corporation tax she takes away some of the concerns about the Budget on 30 October where the language so far has suggested Labour are going after the rich. But she also provides some long term assurance for businesses wanting to invest in the UK.
This is also true of her agreeing to keep Rishi Sunak reforms like full expensing and research and development tax breaks.
More than £60million in UK investment announced at summit, government says
Monday 14 October 2024 17:04
Jabed Ahmed
The government said a total of £63 billion of investment was committed to at a major summit in London.
The deals announced at the International Investment Summit would help create nearly 38,000 jobs, the Department for Business and Trade said.
The Labour government said the figure more than doubles the £29.5 billion committed at last year’s Global Investment Summit under Rishi Sunak’s leadership.
The Tories have claimed some of the announcements already made by the Government were in the pipeline before Sir Keir Starmer took office.
Government will “turbocharge” the UK Infrastructure Bank, Reeves says
Monday 14 October 2024 16:50
Jabed Ahmed
The Government will “turbocharge” the UK Infrastructure Bank by converting it into the new National Wealth Fund, the Chancellor has announced.
Rachel Reeves told the International Investment Summit: “Today, we are creating the National Wealth Fund and making it the UK’s new impact investor.
The National Wealth Fund will catalyse tens of billions of pounds of private investment into clean energy and our growth industries, like green hydrogen, carbon capture and storage and gigafactories.
“From today, we are turbocharging the UK Infrastructure Bank, which will operate as our National Wealth Fund. It will be headquartered in Leeds with a bigger team, more freedom and an expanded suite of financial instruments and more economic risk capital to ensure that the National Wealth Fund’s investments can be even more catalytic.”
Government will cap corporation tax at 25% for the rest of the Parliament, Reeves announces
Monday 14 October 2024 16:50
Jabed Ahmed
The Government will cap corporation tax at 25 per cent for the rest of the Parliament and set out a roadmap on business taxation to provide “certainty” for investors, Rachel Reeves has announced.
The Chancellor told guests at the International Investment Summit that the Government would “create a tax system that supports wealth creation and increases business investment”.
She said: “I know that providing certainty is right at the heart of that. The constant changes that we have seen in corporation tax in recent years have caused instability.
“So at the Budget, this Government will be outlining a corporate tax roadmap. We will cap the rate of corporation tax at 25%, the lowest in the G7, for the duration of this Parliament.
“We will maintain a world-leading capital allowances offer, with full expensing and the £1 million annual investment allowance, and we will maintain the current rates for the research and development reliefs which provide generous support for innovation.
“This is a vital step to deliver certainty and support businesses to grow.”
Reeves announces new British Growth Partnership within the British Business Bank
Monday 14 October 2024 16:32
Jabed Ahmed
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced a new British Growth Partnership within the British Business Bank (BBB).
The partnership is expected to help bring institutional investors such as pension funds together with the BBB to make long-term, fully commercial investments by the end of 2025.
Encouraging British pension funds to invest more in the UK was a key goal of the previous government, and one the new Cabinet is also pursuing.
BBB chief executive Louis Taylor said: “By establishing the British Growth Partnership, the bank will encourage more UK pension fund investment into the UK’s fastest growing, most innovative companies.
“In addition, reforms to the bank’s financial framework, putting our £7.9 billion commercial programmes on a permanent footing, means we can flexibly reinvest our investment returns over the long term to increase growth and prosperity across the UK.”
Reeves pledges end of instability as she announces new National Wealth Fund
Monday 14 October 2024 16:31
Jabed Ahmed
British economic instability has ended and the new Government is bringing investment and jobs back to Britain, the Chancellor has said.
In a speech closing Monday’s International Investment Summit, Rachel Reeves told the world’s biggest businesses they can look forward to “a true partnership” with the new Government as it works to boost growth.
She said: “When we said we would end instability, make growth our national mission and enter a true partnership with business, we meant it.
“The decisions which lie ahead of us will not always be easy. But by taking the right choices to grow our economy and drive investment we will create good jobs and new opportunities across every part of the country.
“That is the Britain we are building.”
Delivering on a manifesto promise, Ms Reeves announced that the existing Leeds-based UK Infrastructure Bank will be transformed into the National Wealth Fund (NWF) with £27.8 billion to invest in clean energy and growth industries.
David Davis chokes up in the Commons remembering Alex Salmond
Monday 14 October 2024 16:28
Jabed Ahmed
David Davis has choked up in the Commons talking of Alex Salmond, who died suddenly at the weekend.
Although they had very different outlooks, the former SNP leader and the man who once vied to lead the Tory party were personal friends.
Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle also said that Mr Salmond left a “deep and lasting legacy”, as he led tributes to the former Scottish first minister in parliament.
Rachel Reeves set to take stage
Monday 14 October 2024 16:00
Albert Toth
Rachel Reeves is set to speak to end the International Investment Summit at 4:20 pm today. The chancellor will likely highlight the investments announced as part of today’s event, including the £1.1 billion for London’s Stansted Airport.
It’s unlikely any Budget measures will be unveiled by the chancellor, with around only two weeks until the event. However, Ms Reeves may take the opportunity to reiterate Labour’s central message of growth, needing to deal with the ‘inheritance’ of the previous government, and the tough decisions ahead.
She has also faced strong criticism today against rumoured changes to employer national insurance contributions, with the IFS’s Paul Johnson saying it would represent a “straightforward breach” of Labour’s election manifesto.
Winter fuel payment row still hangs over government after 100 days
Monday 14 October 2024 15:45
Albert Toth
As Labour ministers greet business leaders with a celebratory mood, criticism continues from other sectors ahead of the new government’s first budget on 30 October.
Campaigners and charities are maintaining pressure on Labour to scrap or tweak the cutback of winter fuel payments to include more pensioners, as it is feared millions could miss out.
Social Affairs Correspondent Holly Bancroft speaks to a pensioner set to miss out on winter fuel help this year because she is just £3 above the weekly threshold for support.
Investment summit about more than Musk, Downing Street says
Monday 14 October 2024 15:30
Albert Toth
The Government’s international investment summit is “not about focusing on any one specific person”, Downing Street said when asked why Tesla owner Elon Musk had not been invited.
It has been suggested the billionaire was snubbed after engaging in a Twitter spat with Sir Keir Starmer during rioting in the summer, when he said demonstrators were subject to two-tier policing.
Asked why Mr Musk was not attending, the PM’s official spokesman said: “This summit is not about focusing on any one specific person.
“What you can see today is 300 of the most significant investors, people who can bring significant amounts of capital to the UK, attending this summit, which is obviously hugely significant.”
Greens criticise Labour’s deregulation drive
Monday 14 October 2024 15:15
Albert Toth
Ellie Chowns, Green Party MP for North Herefordshire, has criticised the prime minister’s promise to strip back ‘unnecessary’ regulation to boost investment.
She said: “Starmer’s pledge to investors that he will “cut red tape” is a tired cliché that, in practice, too often means harming environmental standards and workers’ rights. We’ve had fourteen years of successive Conservative governments promising to “cut red tape,” and all we have to show for it is a flatlining economy and falling living standards.
“If Starmer is serious about attracting investment to the UK, he will need a bolder approach that delivers on the “change” he promised in his election campaign. He could start by re-evaluating our relationship with our biggest trading partner, the European Union.”
Sadiq Khan: We “shouldn’t be scared” of EU single market
Monday 14 October 2024 15:00
Albert Toth
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is also in attendance at Labour’s International Investment Summit today, where he has spoken to reporters about Britain’s relationship with the EU.
“I’m quite clear that all successful countries do the most trade with their nearest neighbours, that’s one of the signs of success,” he said.
“We’ve got on our doorstep, not just friends and colleagues and family indeed, we’ve got a market of more than 500 million people.
“The good news is the Prime Minister spent a lot of the last three months visiting friends in Europe, whether it’s the president of France, the prime minister of Italy, the chancellor of Germany or the European Union, indeed, in Brussels.
“The current Brexit deal we have comes up before review next year. I’m hoping, unlike last time, there will be closer alignment, rather than divergence.
“We should be looking at a whole host of issues and talking about them – whether it’s a youth mobility scheme, whether it’s seeing what we can do to bring people closer together.
“I think the reality is, in the short term, we probably aren’t going to get back as members of the single market. But it’s something we shouldn’t be scared to talk about.”
Green protests outside London’s Guildhall as summit underway
Monday 14 October 2024 14:46
Albert Toth
While ministers and business leaders gather in London’s glitzy Guildhall, several protestors have gathered outside in the grey, drizzly weather.
Those from the Green New Deal Rising group are calling for a wealth tax on the UK’s richest to fund green investment.
“Today, we showed up at the International Investment Summit to deliver a clear message: private business won’t save us,” they wrote on Twitter / X, adding: “We need public investment for public priorities”.
Another campaign group, Stop Sizewell C, is also present – protesting against the planned twin nuclear reactors in Sizewell, Suffolk.
Today, we showed up at the International Investment Summit #UKinvestment to deliver a clear message: private business won't save us.
— Green New Deal Rising (@GNDRising) October 14, 2024
We need public investment for public priorities.
That's why, this Autumn budget, the chancellor must tax extreme wealth pic.twitter.com/52qrbznQQO
No safety slips amid bonfire of red tape, Downing Street vows
Monday 14 October 2024 14:30
Albert Toth
Downing Street has promised the government will not let safety standards slip amid a bonfire of red tape to speed up building and planning permission.
Asked how the Government would ensure consumer safety was not undermined in the context of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s conclusions on deregulation, Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesman said: “I think this exercise is about ensuring that regulators aren’t needlessly getting in the way of growth.
“Clearly, there are very important examples of where regulators play a vital role in upholding high safety standards and clearly building safety is one of those examples, and you heard the prime minister speak about that recently in the Houses of Parliament.
“Clearly, we are not going to compromise on those things, but it’s about striking the right balance and clearly the prime minister, the chancellor, have heard lots of feedback and representations from industry about the regulatory environment that this government has inherited and they’re determined to ensure we have a pro-business, pro-innovation regulatory environment.”
Government launches new Industrial Strategy
Monday 14 October 2024 14:24
Albert Toth
As the investment summit continues, Labour has launched a consultation into its ‘Invest 2035’ Industrial Strategy. The Green Paper sets out a 10-year plan to improve stability and investment in the UK.
The foreword by Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves says: “This Industrial Strategy will provide a launchpad for businesses. It provides the firm foundation for investment businesses have told us they need. This government believes it is our role to provide the certainty that inspires confidence, allowing businesses to plan not just for the next year, but for the next 10 years and beyond.”
“We will not repeat the mistakes of the past, with policy changing as fast as decision-makers.”
‘High-skilled’ immigration necessary for AI innovation, Starmer told
Monday 14 October 2024 14:00
Albert Toth
Speaking to Sir Keir Starmer in a panel discussion, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt said “A pro-growth agenda would start with high-skilled immigration, which is now in place here and should be expanded.”
He adds that, as more graduates become experts in AI, it is essential the UK is able to keep home-grown experts, but also attract international talent.
Speaking earlier, Sir Keir had criticised the “consequences” of Brexit, arguing that they gave the international community the impression that the UK was inward-looking and no longer interested in building relationships.
