Rishi Sunak has admitted he understands Conservative voters’ frustration but warned them not to fall for Keir Starmer’s “con”.
The Prime Minister vowed to fix the social care system, slash NHS waiting lists and continue to ease the cost of living crisis.
He admitted families have been frustrated by soaring energy bills, climbing mortgage rates and growing difficulties in getting a GP appointment.
But in an impassioned plea, Mr Sunak told disillusioned voters “we want the same things for our country”.
He said: “All of those things are real things that will cause you and everyone else an enormous amount of frustration, and I can completely understand that.
“We share the same values, whether that’s on controlling spending, cutting your taxes to ease the cost of living, making sure that we have strong borders and we tackle illegal migration, right?
“These are things that we have in common. These are all things that we want.“And what I’d say to you and everyone else is the next election is a straightforward choice.
“A vote for anyone who is not a Conservative candidate is simply a vote to put Keir Starmer into Number 10.
“So the question for you and everyone else who clapped, I completely appreciate your frustration, is who do you want to see in government after the next election? Who do you think it’s more likely to deliver on the things that you care about?”
The Conservatives are trailing Labour by around 20 points in the latest opinion polls. But Mr Sunak said the controversy over Labour’s candidate in the Rochdale by-election – Azhar Ali – and Sir Keir’s u-turn over spending £28billion on green policies shows the party “has not changed”.
He said: “Keir Starmer has been running around for the last year trying to tell everybody that the Labour Party has changed. Well look what just happened in Rochdale, a candidate saying the most vile conspiracy theories – anti-Semitic.
“So no, the Labour Party hasn’t changed. It’s not changed. It’s a con.
“And that’s what you have to remember: a vote for anyone who’s not me who’s not your Conservative candidate is a vote to put him, with his values and his party in power.
“You saw it last week what that would mean for the economy. He can’t tell you how he’s going to pay for a £28 billion decarbonisation policy which means higher taxes for you and everyone else.
“He’s doing everything he can right now to frustrate the passage of the Rwanda Bill in the House of Lords. Do you want any of that?
“I’m going to keep delivering for you; you and I want the same things. And that’s how we’re going to get them because I’m going to win the next election.”
