Starmer will not get blank cheque if Labour win general election, says RMT boss
Mick Lynch said voters had to ‘grow up a bit’ and recognise Sir Keir as the only realistic alternative to the current Government.
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
Sir Keir Starmer will not receive a “blank cheque to do whatever he likes” if Labour win the general election, the boss of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union has said.
Mick Lynch said voters had to “grow up a bit” and recognise Sir Keir as the only realistic alternative to the current Government, the removal of which he described as “my number one priority”.
Last week Labour’s shadow Scottish secretary, Ian Murray, challenged Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to put the country “out of this Tory misery” and call a general election now.
Speaking at the War on Want event in central London, Mr Lynch told the PA news agency: “I think Labour have got a good chance of getting elected unless they muck it up, really.
“If you can’t defeat this Government we’ll never get a Labour government again, I would have thought, so he’s got a very good chance of winning.
“That doesn’t mean that we give him carte blanche or a blank cheque to do whatever he likes.”
Mr Lynch said campaigners of “all stripes and identities” needed to form an alliance to ensure that politicians, whether Labour or another UK party, “deliver a working-class agenda going forward”.
I don't give Keir Starmer a free pass, or Rachel Reeves, or anyone else on their front benches – there’s a lot to do, no matter where you look
He continued: “I support getting rid of this Government and I’m a realist – the only government we’re going to get as an alternative will be led by Keir Starmer, so people have to deal with that, people have got to grow up a bit in some senses.
“That’s the government we’re going to get and we have to make the best of that opportunity.”
Mr Lynch said the Conservatives staying in Government would be “a disaster” for working people, the environment and the UK’s international standing, adding: “It’s essential that they go and that’s my number one priority.
“I don’t give Keir Starmer a free pass, or Rachel Reeves, or anyone else on their front benches – there’s a lot to do, no matter where you look.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.