King’s Speech: New UK Labour government wants to ‘rein in’ economy

Britain’s King Charles unveiled Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s legislative agenda on Wednesday, promising a services government focused on reviving the economy and tackling issues ranging from a severe housing shortage to the cost of living crisis.

In a royal ceremony, before an audience of lords and lawmakers, Charles read out the laws the government is prioritising after Starmer’s centre-left Labour Party won a large majority in this month’s election.

The package of more than 35 bills will focus on growing the economy, reforming planning laws to make it easier to build homes, speeding up major infrastructure projects, improving transport and creating jobs.

The King’s Speech, written by the government, also attempted to set a new tone for British politics, promoting service rather than self-interest, something Labour said had taken hold during 14 years of often chaotic Conservative rule.

“My government will rule in the service of the country,” said Charles, wearing a crimson and white robe and the Imperial State Crown.

“My administration’s legislative agenda will be mission-driven and grounded in the principles of security, equality, and opportunity for all.”

England’s King Charles reads the King’s Speech from the Sovereign Throne in the House of Lords on Wednesday. Image: Pool via Reuters

Starmer won one of the largest parliamentary majorities in modern British history on July 4, becoming the most powerful national leader since former Prime Minister Tony Blair.

But it faces a series of enormous challenges, including improving public services in a crisis with little room to increase spending.

In his introduction to the proposed legislation, Starmer declared that “the era of politics as performance and self-interest above service is over.”

But he also issued a warning to voters who might expect a new Labour government to quickly fix Britain’s problems. “Rebuilding our country will not happen overnight,” he wrote. “The challenges we face require determined, patient action and serious solutions.”

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“We will unleash growth, take the brakes off Britain and turn the page once and for all on the economic irresponsibility and widespread failure to face the future that we have seen under the Conservative government,” he added.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his new Labour government would “unleash growth and take the brakes off Britain.” Photo: Pool via AP

Housing and Infrastructure

The government has announced legislation to “speed up and simplify the planning process” to help address Britain’s acute housing shortage and long delays to dog-friendly infrastructure projects.

Through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, the government has indicated it will restrict the ability of local people to block new development, saying there will be a “democratic settlement on how homes and infrastructure are built, not whether they are built”.

The government also has plans to gradually renationalise the passenger rail network, set reasonable fares to attract people back onto the trains, and hand control of rail contracts in the hands of private companies back to the state once they expire.

This decision would largely reverse the privatisation of the railways carried out by the then Conservative government in the 1990s.

The speech also made clear the government’s drive to reset relations with the European Union after years of tension over Brexit, with the monarch saying his ministers would “seek a new security agreement to strengthen cooperation”.

It is a goal Starmer will be able to work towards when he hosts a meeting of the European Political Community, a group of more than 40 countries formed in 2022 after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

After last week’s NATO summit in Washington, Starmer and his team hope to move forward with those talks, although any talks on a security agreement are likely to take place later this year.

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