Viewers of tonight’s crunch pre-election debate told Rishi Sunak had the ‘trust factor’ but the Labour leader was ‘more relatable’.
The Prime Minister battled it out with Sir Keir Starmer tonight, but the public say they weren’t ‘massively impressed’ and blasted the vague answers of Sir Keir.
Rishi Sunak took on his opposition in their first head-to-head clash since the 4 July vote was called.
The political stakes could not be higher as Mr Sunak tries to stave off a landslide that is currently projected to be even bigger than achieved by Tony Blair in 1997.
An apocalyptic poll tonight underlined the pressure on the PM, suggesting Labour is on track for the biggest majority in modern political history at 324 seats.
The pair clashed over key issues such as the economy, defence, NHS and migration in the biggest moment of the campaign so far.
After the break, host Julie Etchingham asked both leaders to stop speaking over one another after frequent interruptions throughout.
Members of the public told they weren’t ‘massively impressed’ with either leader, but many noted that Sir Keir appeared far more relatable.
But they criticised his vague statements regarding taxes and tackling the waiting lists and industrial action plaguing the NHS.
Another slammed the PM as ‘spoilt’ by saying: ‘The super rich need to help fund the super poor. Rishi Sunak is all for the rich.’
And a cancer patient told ‘the NHS is 100 per cent broken’ and believes the junior doctors need a rise because the staff are ‘absolutely run off their feet’.
However, a YouGov poll shows 51 per cent of viewers thought the PM performed best overall in tonight’s live debate, with 49 per cent voting for the Labour leader.
What did YOU think of the debate? Put your thoughts in the comments below
Lawyer Benedict Sharrock-Harris said he wasn’t ‘massively impressed’ by either of the leaders, slamming them for merely using ‘soundbites’ as answers.
He added he is especially ‘disappointed’ with the PM not addressing the last 14 years and focusing only on attacking his opposition – going on to say he ‘failed to connect’ with viewers.
‘Keir Starmer was solid but not inspiring. Rishi Sunak came across as he’s run out of plans and all he’s got is dog whistles.’
He noted the Prime Minister’s words about how voting for any party but the Conservatives is ‘to vote for Labour’ being an obvious and pointed reference to Reform UK.
Cancer patient Denise Clarke, 59, from South London, is on universal credit after being forced to leave her Asda supermarket job having being diagnosed.
She said: ‘I do believe the NHS is 100 per cent broken. I’ve just gone through two operations and the care I got was amazing. But those poor nurses and doctors are absolutely run off their feet.
‘I don’t think those junior doctors will get their 35 per cent but I do think they need a rise.’
She added that the Labour leader has the upper hand because the PM came across as a ‘spoilt little boy’ who doesn’t ‘need to feel what the poor feel’.
She told : ‘All Rishi Sunak seems to think about are the taxes that Labour is going to cut, and Labour aren’t owning up to to what taxes they are going to cut.
‘If they want to tax pensioners, they need to think again. Pensioners don’t have enough money.
‘Some taxes need to be raised. I believe the super rich need to help fund the super poor because they’re not missing out. Rishi Sunak is all for the rich.’
In the debate, Mr Sunak warned Brits that Sir Keir will ‘raise your taxes and raid your pensions’.
He said it was a choice between him and Sir Keir for No10, insisting: ‘Beyond raising your taxes and raiding your pensions, no one knows what he will do… I have a clear plan for a more secure future for you and your family.’
Mr Sunak had to been interrupted by host Julie Etchingham as he repeatedly accused Sir Keir of plotting to hike the burden by £2,000 a year. ‘Mark my words Labour will raise your taxes,’ he said.
However, Sir Keir said he wanted to ‘turn the page’ and had a ‘practical plan’ for the country. He jibed that Mr Sunak having called the election early demonstrated that he did not believe the ‘plan was working’. ‘If he thinks that things are going to get better why has he called it now?’ Sir Keir said.
Elliot Horner, a 26-year-old business owner, laughed as he said the PM is ‘definitely feeling the pressure’ however added he made some ‘good points’ on tax.
But he said Sir Keir is ‘more relatable’ and praised his promise to increase jobs.
There were groans from the audience as Mr Sunak was challenged over NHS waiting lists, and claimed they were ‘coming down’. ‘They are coming down from when they were higher,’ he said.
Mr Sunak was targeted with more muttering from the crowd as he said the health service had been hit by ‘industrial action’. ‘So you’re blaming someone else,’ Sir Keir shot back.
NHS GP Ellie Cannon told she doesn’t think Sir Keir was clear on how he intends to fund his plan to get rid of the waiting lists.
She slammed it as ‘gun-slinging’ with a ‘lack of concrete evidence’ on what either will do about industrial action.
Eldon Davis, 45, who owns his own IT Recruitment company, said he feels Mr Sunak is on the ‘backfoot’.
While Sir Keir seemed ‘stronger’ and showed ‘elements of empathy’, especially in terms of the NHS debate.
University of Bristol medical student Jon Craven, 23, from Norfolk, secured his first job as a doctor in July, and previously voted Lib Dem in his first election.
He told both leaders were ‘visibly irritated with one another’.
First year University of Nottingham student Roshini Jaan, 19, from West London, hopes to get future job with the United Nations, is a first time voter and intends to ‘vote Labour all the way.’
She applauded the promise to cut the tax breaks for parents and said it was ‘unfair’ it existed in the first place. She said it is a good way to raise funds.
She added she is ‘especially concerned’ about the National Service plan and agreed with Sir Keir calling it ‘desperate’ and she thinks it’s ‘wasting a very important time’ of young people’s lives.
Meanwhile Archie Parker-Goff, 21, is a third year university student renting in Bristol.
He thought Mr Sunak was far more ‘aggressive’ in an attempt to ‘unnerve’ the opposition leader, which allowed Sir Keir to come off as more ‘calm and composed’.
Archie is under the impression both leaders want to improve living standards but while Sir Keir is good for ’empathy and ideals’ he lacks detailed policies.
On climate change issues, he said it was ‘difficult’ to decide between the leaders due to the amount of figures referenced by both without quoting sources.
The tone of the debate noticeably changed after a question about the conflict in Gaza was raised.
Sir Keir said an immediate ceasefire is needed while Mr Sunak said he hopes a deal put forward by the US is reached.
The question then turned to national security and hostilities soon resume.
After Mr Sunak said Labour couldn’t be trusted to deal with national security, Mr Starmer repeatedly muttered ‘shocking’.
The PM was mocked by the audience as he talked up his plan to reintroduce national service.
He insisted the policy is ‘bold and transformational for young people’ and said Sir Keir can only ‘sneer’ at it because he doesn’t have his own ideas.
Sir Keir countered that it is a show of desperation by Mr Sunak to put something new in front of voters.
The leaders crossed swords on immigration, with Mr Sunak arguing that Rwanda policy could help stop small boats. When Sir Keir branded it an ‘expensive gimmick’ Mr Sunak shot back: ‘You might not like it but I’ve got a plan.’
Mr Sunak also confirmed he is willing to take the UK out of the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights if required to deal with the migrant crisis.
He said: ‘If I am forced to choose between our national security and … a foreign court I am going to choose national security every time.’
The move is controversial and is opposed by a lot of senior Tories on the moderate wing of the party.
The PM will be reeling from Nigel Farage’s decision to return to the political frontline to lead Reform UK’s campaign and seek a House of Commons seat in Clacton-on-Sea.
He faced a double blow yesterday when a new YouGov poll, released shortly after Mr Farage’s dramatic announcement, showed the Tories on course for wipeout.
Mr Sunak stayed away from the campaign trail today as he focused on prepping, arriving in Manchester in casual clothes accompanied by key aides. Earlier he went to scope out the futuristic set for the clash.
Sir Keir branded Mr Sunak ‘the British expert of tax rises’ as they clashed over tax rates.
The PM hit back with the Tory claim that Labour would put up taxes by £2,000 for every family. Referencing audience member Paula who was struggling to pay her bills, the PM asked the Labour leader: ‘If people are struggling with their bills, why do you want to increase the amount they pay in tax … you name it, Labour will tax it.’
Mr Sunak insisted voters are just ‘starting to see the benefits’ of his economic measures when challenged by an audience member over the cost-of-living crisis.
The first question to the leaders came from a woman from Huddersfield saying she is struggling to make ends meet and ‘genuinely worried about my future’.
He pointed to the furlough scheme, efforts to bring down inflation and said ‘now our economy is growing again’.
The PM was applauded when he said he would not give junior doctors a 35 per cent pay rise.
A heated exchange followed between the leaders when he challenged Sir Keir to say how he would resolve the long-running dispute.
The Labour leader replied: ‘There’s only two ways forward: one is a continuing strike, which is what we’ve had for a very, very long time – we’re now four-and-a-half weeks from election. He’s going to kick it into the long grass.
‘Or you get grown up, you go in the room and you resolve this. That does not mean you agree with the 35 per cent, we can’t afford that.’
While the Labour leader may not be facing a situation as desperate as his opponent, he is also under pressure tonight.
Sir Keir drew a laugh from the audience when he mocked Mr Sunak over his claim that NHS waiting lists are coming down.
Asked how long it would take to fix the ‘broken’ health service, the Prime Minister pointed to the damage done by the Covid-19 pandemic, acknowledged it would take time to recover ‘but we are now making progress: waiting lists are coming down’.
He drew chuckles when he responded: ‘They were 7.2 million, they’re now 7.5 million. He says they are coming down and this is the guy who says he’s good at maths.’
In his closing statement, Rishi Sunak appealed to voters wavering between the Tories and Reform UK. He told voters ‘you don’t know what you’d get’ if they chose Labour.
Meanwhile, Sir Keir said that re-electing the Tories would be like seeing ‘the arsonists handed back the matches’.
Sir Keir, who has faced his own difficulties with high-profile rows over Labour’s selection of candidates, was seen campaigning in the North West this morning.
But he said he is ‘looking forward’ to tonight’s TV debate. Tonight will be important for the opposition leader – often labelled as ‘dull’ – as this will be the first real impression many members of the public will have of him.
Asked how was feeling ahead of the head-to-head with Mr Sunak, the Labour leader said: ‘Very good, looking forward to the opportunity to speak directly to voters through the debate to put our case, because at the end of the day it is that clear choice, and I think voters will see that tonight.’
After announcing he is taking over from Richard Tice to lead Reform UK, Mr Farage hit headlines after an OnlyFans model threw a McDonald’s milkshake over his head.
Mr Farage, who previously dubbed Clacton the ‘most patriotic’ town in Britain, merely wiped his eyes and continued.
The incident has led to wide condemnation from MPs all across the political spectrum including Labour’s Yvette Cooper who called it a ‘disgrace’ and ‘completely unacceptable and wrong’.
But Thomas-Bowen, who films her x-rated video clips in the spare bedroom of her mother’s £260,000 house in Grays, told the BBC she flung the banana milkshake because she ‘just felt like it’.
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney today reiterated he should have joined Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer in the ITV debate tonight.
The SNP leader told Sky News that as leader of the ‘third largest party in the United Kingdom’ he should be entitled to take part in the programme.
He said viewers needed more voices as the Labour and the Conservatives ‘agree on an awful lot of things’ including migration and fiscal restraint.
Mr Swinney added there needed to be a different voice against austerity.
Meanwhile, the Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey predicted tonight’s debate will be a snoozefest with viewers ‘switching off’ their TVs if they tune in to Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.
Speaking to the BBC, he said he has a feeling ‘people are fed up of hearing from the Conservatives’.
He said: ‘Rishi Sunak, I have to tell you, he’s had his chance and he’s messed it up. He has to go. These ideas he’s coming out with are all wrong, just very poorly thought through, so the Conservatives need to be kicked out of office.’
He recently struggled to hold back tears after revealing his fears for his disabled son in an emotional interview.
Julie Etchingham moderated the first televised head-to-head debate between the leaders of Conservative and Labour.
The 54-year-old newsreader joined ITV in 2008 after previously working at the BBC and Sky News.
She brings plenty of experience to the format having chaired debates between David Cameron and Nigel Farage in 2016, and ITV debates in the 2017 and 2019 general elections.
Away from politics, Etchingham has also co-presented ITV’s coverage of major royal events such as Prince Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle and the funeral of Prince Philip in 2021.
What did YOU think of the debate? Put your thoughts in the comments below
London GP Ellie Cannon, 47
‘I thought the mud slinging was disappointing but I suppose predictable given that the Conservatives have been in power for 14 years.
‘Of course as a GP I was particularly tuned in to what they said about the NHS and I felt Keir Starmer sounded sensible, he is correct in saying it is all about the waiting times and he seemed committed to improving that even though he didn’t elaborate on how Labour would pay for it all.
‘There was a moment when Rishi Sunak put some of the blame for the long waiting lists on the industrial action and I thought I saw a moment of regret on his face as he realised ‘I shouldn’t have said that.’
‘It didn’t land well with the audience and it’s not something I expected to hear from him.
‘The country has to decide who is the person with the plan for the NHS and when the Conservatives came into power it was not in this state, things have become worse and that isn’t a political point, it’s just a fact.
‘If the whole debate was narrowed down to the single issue of health, at this stage I would be going with Labour because I think I trust them more to tackle the massive problem of waiting lists. It was sad to hear the lady who asked the question say her relative had died whilst waiting for treatment.
‘I was also intrigued to hear the two of them agree about the situation in Palestine and Israel’s right to defend itself after the massacre of October 7th.
‘They were both clear that a ceasefire and two state solution could only come about by the safe return of the hostages.’
Medical student Jon Craven, 23, from Norfolk, in his final year at the University of Bristol and who has secured his first professional job as a doctor in July
‘I think tonight’s debate probably comes down to one fundamental disagreement between them: Do you think Britain is on the right track and the Conservative plan is working, or do you think that Britain is broken ad we need changed with Labour?
‘I think Starmer was a little more persuasive and when it came to connecting with the audience on the cost of living and the NHS he looked a little more comfortable.
‘Sunak’s biggest laugh of the night came when he was talking about the NHS waiting list and how the Tories had it under control.
‘I think Starmer looked a little bit weaker when he was having to talk about what he would do differently and I think he did struggle at times from big attacks from Sunak when pushed on issues such as immigration.’
‘Overall I was planning to vote labour before the debate and I think this probably hasn’t changed after the debate.’
After the first half, Jon said: ‘It has been a quite bad tempered start to the debate and both have been visibly irritated at times. Sunak has struggled trying to be empathetic and his response to audience questions.
‘On the question of public services I think Starmer has probably looked stronger but again he has struggled a little bit when pushed what he would do differently.
‘Overall there are not too many surprises for anyone who has been following the campaign.’
Small business owner Elliot Horner, 26, from Lancs
‘I enjoyed watching it.
‘There was a lot of skirting around questions and going on the attack with each other, and I would have liked to hear a few more direct answers.
‘But I think Keir was the winner tonight and that he will probably win the next general election.
‘He answered how he’s going to increase jobs across lots of different sector, which is key, and he came across as being a lot more relatable.
‘You can tell he’s been in positions that so many of us in the UK have. Rishi does come across as a bit of a robot.
‘I think Rishi didn’t show much personality. I think he will struggle with being relatable.’
Elliot said he wouldn’t reveal his voting intention but added: ‘I’ve made my mind up – I had a bit of an inclination beforehand but after watching the debate it’s solidified.’
Elliot, who also runs beer business Cannabrew and employs 12 staff, told of his disappointment that neither leader addressed key issues for business owners, such as the Bank of England’s base rate running at a 16-year high.
He said: ‘That was massively disappointing.
‘In my sector, we have breweries, pubs and restaurants closing down left, right and centre. Thats affecting us and our trade.
‘The talks around tax cuts and leaving people with more disposable income is great. ‘But there was no mention of the base rate or what help there will be for small businesses – I would have preferred them to talk about it.
‘Our electricity costs have skyrocketed and it’s been really tough over the past couple of years.
‘I want the base rate to come down. That’s quite a selfish view but that would massively affect my life. We would be able to give staff more hours and be able to grow the business in different ways.
‘I was massively disappointed there was no mention of that.’
Elliot said he thought Sunak came across as ‘desperate’ by repeatedly trying to jump in.
And of Starmer, he added: ‘I think he could have answered some of the questions more directly instead of talking about his upbringing.’
Student Archie Parker-Goff, 21, believed Keir Starmer came out on top of the first TV election showdown with Rishi Sunak
‘I think Rishi landed a few punches.
‘On the whole Starmer won the night but it has not massively shifted the dial for me. I expected it to be more one sided than it was.’
Archie, from Chester, has just finished studying for an economics degree at Bristol University.
He described himself as’ a quite typical centre-right leaning voter’.
But he added: ‘Before an election campaign I would be thinking about a Conservative vote but that isn’t an immediately obvious decision this time.
‘There’s been a really poor last couple of years and a dismal record over 14. You can’t just go with it for the sake of it.
‘I have a fair amount of sympathy for them on the economics front. There was Brexit then almost straight after that there was the whole Covid saga, oil prices flying up following Ukraine. I accept it’s been a difficult climate but after 14 years you have to ask is it time for a re-fresh?
‘You need a mandate to govern and clearly the cycle is coming to end.’
He said of the debate: ‘The impression I got was that Rishi was the more aggressive of the two. I think he felt he had to come out of his box a bit more and prove some more points given where they are in the polls.
‘In some aspects it made Starmer look a little bit more calm and composed. Equally I think if Rishi was successful at anything it was probably at exposing the lack of policy that Starmer has committed to at this point.
‘When you listen to what they both have to say about the cost of living, public services, I think most people agree that they have to be improved.
‘I think Starmer needs to focus a little bit more on how we are going to get there.
‘That being said, I think Starmer connected better with the audience compared to Rishi. I think he came across more empathetic.’
Denise Clarke, 59, has been reliant on the NHS for care after being diagnosed with cancer last August
The mother-of-four had to quit her Asda supermarket job as a consequence and is now reliant on Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment handouts.
Denise voted Conservative at the 2019 general election but after watching the first election debate concluded: ‘It’s Labour for me’.
She accused Rishi Sunak of being ‘rude’ with host Julie Etchingham, adding: ‘I thought he came across as a desperate man’.
She said: ‘I was undecided before watching but I’ve made my mind up now. It’s got to be Labour.
‘I think Sunak came across as a desperate man. He was rude, I thought. He kept talking over the host and Starmer didn’t get much time to speak because Sunak kept jumping in.’
Denise, who is being treated for kidney cancer at London’s Guy’s and St Thomas’s hospitals, was left unimpressed with Sunak’s plan to fix the ‘broken’ NHS.
She said: ‘The doctors and nurses are run off their feet. They’re wonderful and I could not fault them but the system is broken.
‘You could see they don’t have time – there’s not a spare minute in their working day.
‘I’ve got a couple of friends who work in the NHS and they are absolutely shattered. My closest friend is a paramedic with the London Ambulance Service. She does 12 hour shifts for very little money, and what she goes through is horrific
‘I got the impression that Keir is going to mend the NHS and social care, but it’s going to take time. But I think he’s going to do more than Sunak is going to do.
On Sunak’s admission that he wouldn’t hesitate to use private healthcare to help a loved one in need of urgent care, Denise added: ‘I couldn’t believe that.
‘Ordinary people who do an honest day’s work could never afford that. It’s okay when you’re richer than the king.
‘I’m on Universal Credit and I get PIP but I struggle hand-to-mouth. I can’t get through the month on what I get. Universal Credit gives me money, but I’ve still got bills to pay and shopping to buy and it doesn’t cover it.
‘How does Sunak thing he’s going to make things better? He’s had 14 years to make things better and they’ve got worse.’
Londoner Eldon Davis, 45, business owner
Mr Davis is still not sure who to vote for on polling day but was glad to see ‘a bit more of Keir in action’.
As a father and a husband of a headteacher, he was pleased to see education was given a spotlight during the debate tonight.
The recruitment company owner said: ‘My wife is a headteacher and getting more teachers and better qualified teachers is huge. This pledge is going to be a life saver. It’s such a challenge to hire teachers at the moment, they are having to hire people from other countries and it’s so difficult.’
But he added Labour’s plans to impose 20% VAT on private school fees was a ‘kick in the teeth’, adding: ‘I don’t think that’s going to go down very well.’
Eldon was also impressed by Keir’s promise to deliver 1.5million new homes, adding: ‘That really resonated with me. As a homeowner I think that’s a great concept and it will be interesting to see how that’s implemented. Home ownership could be a vote winner for young people and students.’
Eldon said he was struggling with his decision as his family are Labour ‘through and through’.
But he said owning his own IT recruitment and life coaching company has changed his view in recent years.
He said: ‘As a business owner I didn’t see anything there for businesses or about major investments. Seeing the debate has definitely given me more of a view of Keir but he didn’t give me confidence on the business side.’
Asked who he felt won the debate, Eldon said: ‘I think that Rishi was able to pull on aspects of trust as he has been in power – but the debate was in favour of Keir. He was able to go toe-to-toe with Rishi.’
Eldon also felt Keir resonated more with the audience, explaining: ‘I think Rishi didn’t really have that sort of empathy when they were discussing topics like the cost of living.’
He also said he did not appreciate Rishi repeating the claim that Labour would put up taxes by £2,000, adding: ‘It was irritating.’
Geography student Roshini Jaan, 19, from West London, in her first year at the University of Nottingham, with hopes of working for the United Nation
She is first time voter but vows to ‘vote Labour all the way.’
She said: ‘Labour will be getting my vote. I like that Keir Starmer wants to abolish tax breaks and is trying to get more money from the super-rich to raise money for the NHS and education.’
State-educated Roshini said: ‘Rishi was very hypocritical, and a lot of his policies are not looking to the future and he kept dwelling on the past and saying what he had done in lockdown, and he was getting on my nerves.
‘The Government is a shambles and it needs to change for the benefit of students like me and families.’
She added: ‘Starmer’s position with tax breaks is a really good idea and he will help people like me. Cutting tax breaks for parents is a good odd way to raise funds and will help children like me who went to state school.’
Lawyer Benedict Sharrock-Harris, 32, of south London
‘It was interesting that during the debate on the NHS, Rishi Sunak was trying to drum home the message that if you get Labour you get more strikes.
‘I think he got himself into difficulty here, especially when he blamed the increase in waiting times on the industrial action.
‘The only reason these people were striking is because they are not getting the resources, the pay and the conditions they need and that can only be put down to the Conservatives, I don’t think that will have played well with people watching.
‘Sunak also kept coming back to his claim that working families would be £2,000 a year worse off under Labour.
‘It is hard to see how that analysis could have arrived at that with any accuracy and to me it seemed disingenuous and thrown out there without context.
‘He also appears to be overly concerned about Nigel Farage and his mates at Reform. Instead of looking back to the days of decent conservatism, he seems more interested in winning back those voters by moving further to the right.
‘These debates are always going to come down to soundbites because that is really all there is time to rely on because of the format, but the way they conduct themselves is important.
‘Starmer comes across as being fully across the facts, but perhaps without the charisma or flair that Blair showed back in 1997.
‘Sunak constantly tried to speak over Starmer and the moderator and seemed as though he felt he had the right to do that, which rubbed me up the wrong way.
‘One thing I felt was missing from the debate tonight was the crucial issue of child care, it affects so many families.
‘We have a six month old and my wife is preparing to return to work.
But with child care factored in she would end up working for less than the minimum wage.
‘It’s something that needs to be tackled and I’d like to hear what each of the party leaders has to say about it.’