Sir Keir Starmer vows to “take back control” as he announces laws he claims will carry out Brexiteer wishes

SIR Keir Starmer today announced new laws he claims will carry out the wishes of Brexit voters – even vowing to “Take Back Control”.

The Labour boss used his New Year speech to appeal to the Leave supporters who deserted the party in droves at the last election.

Despite campaigning vigorously for Remain and a second referendum, he said he “couldn’t disagree” with the arguments made by Brexiteers during the campaign.

He even pinched Vote Leave’s catchphrase as he revealed plans for a Take Back Control Bill to spread democracy around Britain will feature if he becomes PM.

Speaking in East London, Sir Keir said: “It’s not unreasonable for us to recognise the desire for communities to stand on their own feet.

“It’s what Take Back Control meant. The control people want is control over their lives and their community.

“So we will embrace the Take Back Control message. But we’ll turn it from a slogan to a solution. From a catchphrase into change. We will spread control out of Westminster.”

The Tories branded Sir Keir’s latest pitch for power “another vacuous relaunch” and accused him of peddling “empty slogans”. 

A party spokesman said: “He spent more time listing off his own supposed achievements than setting out Labour’s plan to deliver for the British public – failing to mention how he will cut crime, crack down on illegal migration and reduce borrowing.”

Sir Keir declined to say whether he regretted arguing for a second referendum while working for Jeremy Corby.

But he told the Sun he accepted there was “always something very important sitting behind that leave vote.”

And he admitted the message of Take Back Control – masterminded by Dominic Cummings – captured a “powerful” feeling in the country.

Yet it risks opening a fresh row with sections of his own party still agitating for closer ties with the EU. 

Labour Mayor of London Sadiq Khan wants to rejoin Brussels’ single market – meaning Britain would have to follow the block’s rules – but Sir Keir flatly ruled that out. 

Labour says the Take Back Control Bill will be in Sir Keir’s first King’s Speech should he win the keys to No10.
It would give the public greater powers to decide on how services are run in their areas and how government funding is spent.

New laws would also force Westminster to bend to the will of local residents unless there are very good reasons to block something.

Since becoming leader in 2019 following the party’s worst result since the 1930s, Sir Keir has tried to claw back support in Red Wall towns that abandoned Labour.

Trying to muscle in on the Tories’ turf, he said today: “The changes we’ve made – on antisemitism, on national security and NATO, on making economic stability the platform for everything we do – has restored a degree of trust. Laid a foundation. This year, we’ve got to build on that.”