Keir Starmer 'not looking at the polls' for Wakefield by-election race despite Labour lead

Two recent polls have given Labour a 20 percentage point lead in the seat ahead of the vote on June 23, while several bookmakers put the party at 1/100 to win it back from the Tories.

But speaking during a visit to the city in West Yorkshire this morning, Sir Keir said Labour and its candidate Simon Lightwood were taking nothing for granted.

"I put all polling on one side - the only poll that matters is the one on the day of the by-election," he said.

"I'm conscious that we lost this seat in 2019 so we need to earn every single vote.

"We are not taking anything for granted, we are not even looking at those polls, we are looking at what conversations we are having with people on the doorstep about what matters to them and how do we earn their trust and re-earn their trust in a number of case.

"We want to give Wakefield what it deserves which is a strong powerful Member of Parliament who will speak up for the people of Wakefield."

During his visit to Wakefield, Sir Keir was accompanied by Mr Lightwood and Wakefield Council leader Denise Jeffery and met with Labour activists as well as Carole Manders, a local voter who supported the Tories in 2019 but now intends to switch back to Labour at the by-election.

Speaking after he conversation with Sir Keir, Mrs Manders said she had voted for the Conservatives after previously being a Labour supporter after becoming "a bit fed up with what was going on" with issues such as Brexit.

But she said she now considers Boris Johnson to be a "buffoon" and said she had found Sir Keir to be a "very genuine person".

"Brexit is still not done and I don't think it ever will be done," she said.

"I have always been brought up in Labour and now I have gone back to them. My last words to Keir Starmer were 'I shall hold you to account'."

But Sir Keir's visit also brought some isolated heckles from passers-by in Wakefield city centre, including one man who shouted 'Get him out'.

It followed polling over the weekend by Opinium which found 28 per cent of people think Boris Johnson would be the best Prime Minister, compared to 26 per cent for Sir Keir. The Labour leader has a -6 approval rating, compared to -27 for Mr Johnson.

When asked whether he was a help or a hindrance to the Labour campaign in Wakefield, Sir Keir said: "I am a help and that is why I am here. I have got a fantastic team here in Wakefield and we are running a very positive campaign. What I'm very clear about is we have got to earn every vote.

"What I am interested in is are we persuading those voters who didn't vote for us in 2019 to vote again for the Labour party. The answer to that is yes."

During his visit to Wakefield, news broke that Sir Keir is under investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards over potential breaches of rules on earnings and gifts.

The Parliamentary website showed on Monday that Kathryn Stone is looking at whether he broke two sections of the MPs’ code of conduct on registering interests.

A Labour source told the PA news agency that the investigation centres on a number of slightly late declarations, as Sir Keir insisted he is confident he has not broken the rules.

One strand of her investigation, which began on Wednesday, is looking at the registration of interests under the section on employment and earnings.

A second area being looked at is a possible breach of the section concerning gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources.

During a visit to Wakefield in West Yorkshire, the Labour leader told broadcasters the allegations are not a surprise, adding: “My office is dealing with it and will be replying in due course.”

Asked if he is sure he has done nothing wrong, he said: “Absolutely confident, there’s no problem here.”

A subsequent statement by Labour sought to blame administrative errors in his office for a “small number of late declarations” under investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and said an apology has already been issued.

A spokesman for the Labour leader said: “Keir Starmer takes his declaration responsibilities very seriously and has already apologised for the fact that administrative errors in his office have led to a small number of late declarations.

“The Standards Commissioner has asked for more information which we are happy to provide.”

The matters relate to the section of the MPs’ code which states: “Members shall fulfil conscientiously the requirements of the House in respect of the registration of interests in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests.

“They shall always be open and frank in drawing attention to any relevant interest in any proceeding of the House or its committees, and in any communications with ministers, members, public officials or public office holders.”

The nature of the alleged breaches is not yet clear.

The rules on employment and earnings say that MPs must register payments of more than £100 which they receive for work outside the Commons.

Under the section on gifts and hospitality, they must register benefits worth more than £300, or multiple benefits from the same source if they exceed that value in a calendar year.

The register shows that, as of the end of May, Sir Keir had registered earnings of £17,598.60 for legal advice given before 2020, the year in which he became the Opposition leader.

It shows the lawyer received the sum on August 24 last year for around 70 hours of work, before registering it seven days later.

Two copyright payments for books written before his election to Parliament in the London constituency of Holborn and St Pancras are also included, as is a £18,450 advance from publisher HarperCollins for a book he is writing.

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