Party leaders face challenges at Nottingham Trent University for final election debate
The prime minister candidates were asked questions about the economy, illegal migration and gender ahead of the upcoming general election.
A BBC debate took place at the university on Wednesday night between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
The politicians discussed how they would tackle these issues in our country if they were elected on July 5.
To start the debate, Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer were asked how the public can restore faith in politics after recent scandals.
Both leaders addressed the recent betting allegations within the parties and said that these candidates have been dealt with and suspended.
A question about closing the borders led to a heated debate between the leaders about how they would deal with illegal migration.
Rishi Sunak said a deterrent such as the Rwanda plan is needed to stop people from arriving in small boats and accuses the Labour Party of being unable to deal with this which Sir Keir Starmer responded to saying that the deterrent isn’t working and the migrants should be processed.
The matter of tax cuts was brought up during many questions, specifically by Rishi Sunak who said that the Conservatives will cut taxes if they remain in power and that Labour will raise taxes which was denied by Sir Keir Starmer and he said in a previous question that he would not raise income tax or VAT.
The male leaders were also asked how they would put women’s interests first. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer talked about the importance of collaboration within his team with the many ‘fantastic and wonderful women’ as his partners in the party and Rishi Sunak spoke about wanting to create a safe and supportive country for women and girls because of his daughters.
This led to a related question about protecting single-sex spaces regardless of whether someone has changed gender with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) where Rishi Sunak said he would do this by changing the Equalities Act and believes that ‘sex means biological sex’.
Sir Keir Starmer said he would protect women-only spaces but he will treat those who don’t identify as the same gender they were born into with ‘dignity and respect’.
A question about how to mend our post-Brexit trading relationship with Europe in order to help business owners in the UK led to a disagreement between leaders as Sunak said one of the things he would do to benefit this situation is abolishing national insurance for business owners but Starmer doesn’t believe it should be cut as it pays for our public services.
Sir Keir Starmer also believed that he could have gotten a better exit deal for trading to which Rishi Sunak responded that there could have been a possibility of a better deal but it would result in more illegal migration.
The last question was the one that resonated most with the student community where the leaders were asked how they would help young people get a job and buy a house after university.
Sir Keir Starmer said he wants to ensure that there are well-paid jobs for students, build more houses to deal with the housing shortage and create a mortgage deposit scheme.
Rishi Sunak said he would use the help-to-buy scheme and abolish stamp duty to help first-time home buyers.
The event was attended by many journalists and academics including Nottingham Trent University Students’ Union President Anna O’Hara who is passionate about getting students’ voices heard and raising awareness of the issues that young people face.
She said: “It’s so important for students to get together and vote on things that they find so important.
“This will shape the next five years of our future, not just the next few months and I think using your voice really matters.”
Anna also wants the new leader to have more knowledge of what students need and the struggles they face such as the cost of living crisis.
The general election takes place on July 4 and anyone registered to vote will be able to take part in the ballot.
