Sir Keir Starmer has scrambled together a last-minute strategy to recapture voters from the rising tide of Reform.
The Prime Minister will put the cost-of-living crisis at the heart of a desperate new year pitch to voters next week with a promise to ‘make life better’ across Britain in 2026.
Over the coming days, Starmer will undertake a number of visits where he will highlight policies such as a freeze on rail fares and fuel duty.
These policies, Starmer will argue, mean ‘more people begin to feel that positive change’ and that Britain is ‘turning the corner’.
In a speech on Monday, he is set to admit that Brits have it ‘harder than it should be’.
He will then tell ministers when they return to Westminster from the Christmas recess that there can be ‘no let-up’ in Government plans to ease the financial burden on families.
‘I know families across the country are still worried about the cost-of-living,’ the Prime Minister will say. ‘There will be no let-up in our fight to make life better for them.’
This desperate bid to win back voters is part of a last-ditch attempt by Downing Street to win back voters from Reform before local and devolved elections in May.
As Scotland and Wales prepare to cast their votes, new polls show Labour is currently tied with the Green Party.
However, both parties are two points behind the Conservatives and 13 points behind Reform UK – which has led almost every poll since April last year.
The Labour party entered 2026 with their lowest poll ratings to date – 16 per cent – leading many members to question Starmer’s suitability as leader.
Although 86 per cent of the public were concerned about the cost-of-living crisis, one MP told The Telegraph they doubted Starmer’s reset would work.
The unnamed MP said: ‘There’s no doubt that the cost-of-living is right at the core of the issues that people are suffering with, but the Government has been in place for a long time and hasn’t done anything about the cost-of-living.’
It comes after a turbulent year for the Labour administration, with sluggish economic growth and leadership rumblings amid dismal poll ratings before the local elections in May.
The Government’s decision at the Budget to extend a freeze on income tax thresholds, together with previous extensions, also means millions of people face being dragged into paying higher rates.
Ministers say the changes in the autumn statement, which included overall taxes being hiked by £26 billion, were ‘fair and necessary’ to help cut the cost-of-living and improve public services.
Starmer has acknowledged life is still ‘harder than it should be’ for many Britons, but promised more people will begin to feel ‘a sense of hope’ in the coming months.
Speaking at an event on Monday, the Prime Minister will tell families: ‘This Labour Government is on your side, doing everything we can to ease the cost-of-living – and make life better.
‘In 2026 the choices we made will mean more people begin to feel that positive change.
‘Cutting your energy bills by £150, raising the national living wage.
‘We’re helping cut the cost of your commute and the school run too. Freezing rail fares for the first time in 30 years. Capping bus fares. And extending the fuel duty cut until September.’
He will add: ‘This is real change that you will be able to feel day in day out. Britain is turning the corner and 2026 is the year more people will feel renewal becoming reality.’
‘We’ll use every tool we have to help you with the cost-of-living and make your lives better. That’s my promise to all of you.’
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the Prime Minister ‘expects gratitude’ when ‘we know it’s his decisions that have made the cost-of-living worse’.
‘The jobs tax pushed inflation to double where we left it, and their net zero rush means energy bills are up over £300,’ she said.
‘At the same time, working people are paying higher taxes to fund more benefits and more welfare.
‘Labour have no plan to fix Britain and working families are paying the price. Only the Conservatives have the backbone to cut spending, cut taxes, and get Britain working again.’
Read more
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- Can Keir Starmer’s Labour Government recover after the winter fuel cuts backlash and Reform’s surprising election surge?
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- Will Keir Starmer’s overhaul to bolster economic policy steer Labour away from another disastrous tax raid on hard-pressed Britons?
- Is Britain on the brink of a ‘brighter future’ as Sir Keir Starmer promises in his first Christmas address amidst economic stagnation?
