Starmer under growing pressure over Sunak attack ad but defies backlash with second post

Sir Keir Starmer is facing increasing pressure to withdraw an “appalling” attack advert that claims Rishi Sunak does not think people who sexually abuse children should go to prison.

Labour was accused of “gutter politics” over the social media post, which has been condemned by politicians from across the political spectrum as well as high-profile Labour supporters.

The Independent also understands that members of Sir Keir’s own shadow cabinet are uncomfortable with the tactic. One Labour frontbencher, shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell, refused to endorse the advert when asked, although she said she did not think it should be removed.

But the party said it stood by the graphic – and later doubled down, releasing a second advert suggesting that the prime minister doesn’t think people convicted of firearm possession with intent to harm should be jailed.

An outcry erupted on Friday morning after Labour posted a photograph of Mr Sunak alongside the words: “Do you think adults convicted of sexually assaulting children should go to prison? Rishi Sunak doesn’t.”

In the same post, Labour describes itself as “the party of law and order”. Crime is a key battleground in the run-up to May’s local elections.

Denis MacShane, who served as a minister in Tony Blair’s government, criticised the ad, saying Labour “should not get into [the] gutter”.

Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell urged his party to remove it, saying: “This is not the sort of politics a Labour Party, confident of its own values and preparing to govern, should be engaged in ... please withdraw it.”

Conservative MP and science minister George Freeman described the initial advert as a “new low in British politics” and denounced it as “appalling”.

And the chair of the Commons defence select committee, Tory MP Tobias Ellwood, said: “I’ve called it out on my own side for stooping low and do so again now.” He warned that if such attacks became commonplace they could “put people off entering politics”.

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Former justice minister Rory Stewart denounced the advert as “bile” and “nasty politics”, while Tory party deputy chair Lee Anderson accused Labour of resorting to a “vile and desperate” campaign strategy.

SNP MP John Nicolson said the advert “cheapened and debased” politics.

Criticism also came from beyond the world of politics, with The Rotters’ Club author Jonathan Coe tweeting: “Please don’t go down this road, Labour.”

Actor Samuel West, recently seen in All Creatures Great and Small, described it as “lower than low” and said he was “embarrassed” to be a Labour member.

Judges, rather than MPs, are responsible for sentences given to individual criminals. The figures quoted by Labour are also controversial because they cover the period since 2010, which was five years before Mr Sunak became an MP.

The Twitter post, which referenced a Labour analysis of Ministry of Justice data, said: “Under the Tories, 4,500 adults convicted of sexually assaulting children under 16 served no prison time. Labour will lock up dangerous child abusers.”

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Former Tory cabinet minister Sayeeda Warsi criticised both the graphic and recent comments by the home secretary Suella Braverman, saying: “Dog whistle met by dog whistle. Disgraceful comments by Braverman over the weekend has triggered an appalling fight into the gutter.”

A Labour source said: “We stand by the graphic.” However, in an appearance on BBC Breakfast, Ms Powell declined to say publicly that she stood by the advert.

“What I stand by is what that graphic is trying to show, which is that the prime minister of our country is responsible for the criminal justice system of our country, and currently that criminal justice system is not working,” she said.

Asked again whether she stood by the message, she said: “I stand by what this tweet and this campaign is trying to highlight.”

Commenting on the fact that the ad featured a large picture of Mr Sunak’s face and his signature, she added: “The graphic itself, obviously, is a skit based on [Mr Sunak’s] own graphics that he extensively uses.”

In response to Mr McDonnell’s criticism, she said: “I can see that it’s not to everybody’s taste, absolutely, and that some people won’t like it ... But that is the cut-and-thrust nature of politics. I didn’t design the graphic; it’s not my graphic.”

Ms Powell told Sky News: “We do have serious criminals now, in this country, almost routinely getting more lenient custodial sentences than they would otherwise do, because the system is creaking at the knees.”

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She said this was not down to sentencing guidelines, but to a lack of “capacity in the system to actually implement those guidelines”, with a “huge backlog” in court cases and pressure on prison places.

She later said she did not think the advert should be withdrawn.

“I don’t think it should be deleted ... this graphic that came online last night is, as I say, it’s a skit; it’s a take on other graphics that the prime minister himself has produced in the past,” she told Times Radio. “And at the end of the day, he is the prime minister of this Conservative government, he is responsible for the criminal justice system of this country, and the fact that, at the moment, it is on its knees, and unable to process and deal with serious criminal offences. And he should be, along with his ministers, accountable for that.”

A Tory source pointed to Sir Keir’s time as director of public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013, saying: “Labour HQ have highlighted Sir Keir’s appalling record at keeping children safe.”

If you are a child and you need help because something has happened to you, you can call the NSPCC free of charge on 0800 1111. You can also call the NSPCC if you are an adult and you are worried about a child, on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adults on 0808 801 0331