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Keir Starmer warned of 'tough decisions' looming and tried to stop people calling him 'PM' today as he kicked off his Red revolution.
At his first press conference in Downing Street, the Labour leader said questioners could call him 'Keir' as he acknowledged that his government will be 'judged on actions not on words'.
He said the government will need to make 'tough decisions and take them early' - saying that there would be 'raw honesty' about what needs to be done, although he denied that meant tax hikes.
Instead he stressed that crime could be a crucial area, after it emerged his new prisons minister has suggested two-thirds of people in jail should not be there. Sir Keir said there were 'too many prisoners, not enough prisons'.
Sir Keir also confirmed that the Rwanda policy pursued by Rishi Sunak was 'dead and buried', despite claims it was having an effect on Channel boats.
Asked if he was getting used to being referred to as 'Prime Minister', Sir Keir chuckled and said: 'I'm very happy to be called Keir or Prime Minister.'
The comments came after jubilant senior ministers met in No10 for the first time after his dramatic landslide triumph.
Flanked by deputy PM Angela Rayner, Sir Keir warned his team they have a 'huge amount of work to do'.
The premier appointed the Cabinet last night after the extraordinary scale of his victory - achieved despite Labour receiving fewer votes than under Jeremy Corbyn in 2017 - became clear.
Rachel Reeves has made history as the UK's first woman Chancellor and Yvette Cooper is Home Secretary.
Sir Keir spoke to a host of foreign leaders last night, including reaffirming the 'Special Relationship' with Joe Biden and telling EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen he wanted 'close cooperation'.
Meanwhile, incoming Health Secretary Wes Streeting has already opened talks with the BMA over the junior doctors' strikes, sparking fears he could offer big concessions to their demands for 35 per cent pay hikes.
And new Transport Secretary Louise Haigh has pledged to nationalise Britain's railways 'as soon as possible'.
As Britain gets to grips with a dramatically changed political map:
- Sir Keir is promising to go on tour around the four UK nations in the coming days saying he will not be 'tribal' and wants to work with devolved administrations;
- Furious Tory manoeuvring is under way as a leadership contest looms, with calls for the party to shift to the Right;
- Nigel Farage is set to do a walkabout in Essex with another of the five Reform MPs;
At his first press conference in Downing Street, the Labour leader urged questioners to refer 'call me Keir' as he acknowledged that his government will be 'judged on actions not on words'
Keir Starmer warned his new Cabinet they have a 'huge amount of work to do' today as kicked off Labour's era in power
DPM Angela Rayner and Chancellor Rachel Reeves were in Downing Street early this morning (pictured) as the new Labour government tries to get a running start
A moving crew was moving furniture and works of art out of Downing Street today
Packing cases have been seen being moved around Downing Street today
Incoming Health Secretary Wes Streeting has already opened talks with the BMA over the junior doctors' strikes, sparking fears he could offer big concessions to their demands for 35 per cent pay hikes
Asked if he would be willing to raise tax to fund public services, the PM said 'we're going to have to take the tough decisions, and take them early'.
Sir Keir said he would approach the challenges with a 'raw honesty' but insisted that was 'not a sort of prelude to saying there's some tax decision that we didn't speak about before'.
'In relation to the tough decisions, we're going to have to take them and take them early. And we will do that with a raw honesty,' he said.
'But that is not a sort of prelude to saying there's some tax decision that we didn't speak about before that we're going to announce now.
'It's about the tough decisions to fix the problem and being honest about what they are.'
The premier was questioned about comments made by James Timpson, the new minister of state for prisons, parole and probation, during an interview with Channel 4 News earlier this year.
The newly-minted peer - boss of the Timpsons firm - suggested that two-thirds of prisoners did not need to be there, backing community sentences instead. He pointed out that the Netherlands had managed to knock down half of their prison buildings.
'We are addicted to punishment. So many of the people who are in prison in my view shouldn't be there,' he said.
The Prison Governors' Association (PGA) has said the entire criminal justice system 'stands on the precipice of failure', with early release necessary because they jails are at full capacity.
Sir Keir said: 'We've got too many prisoners, not enough prisons.
'That's a monumental failure of the last government on any basic view of government to get to a situation where you haven't got enough prison places for prisoners, doesn't matter what your political stripe, that is a failure of government.
'It's a failure of government to instruct the police not to arrest. This has not had enough attention, in my view, but it's what happened.
'We will fix that, but we can't fix it overnight and therefore it is impossible to simply say we will stop the early release of prisoners and you wouldn't believe me if I did say it.'
On Channel boats, Sir Keir said: 'The Rwanda scheme was dead and buried before it started. It's never been a deterrent.
'Look at the numbers that have come over in the first six and a bit months of this year, they are record numbers, that is the problem that we are inheriting.
'It has never acted as a deterrent, almost the opposite, because everybody has worked out, particularly the gangs that run this, that the chance of ever going to Rwanda was so slim, less than 1%, that it was never a deterrent.
'The chances were of not going and not being processed and staying here, therefore, in paid for accommodation for a very, very long time.
'It's had the complete opposite effect and I'm not prepared to continue with gimmicks that don't act as a deterrent.'
Shortly before the press conference, Sir Keir told Cabinet: 'Look colleagues, it is absolutely fantastic to welcome you to the Cabinet, our first meeting.
'And it was the honour and privilege of my life to be invited by the King, His Majesty the King yesterday to form a government and to form the Labour Government of 2024.
'And now we hold our first Cabinet meeting. So I welcome you to it.
'We have a huge amount of work to do, so now we get on with our work.'
Sir Keir made a raft of appointments last night as he swapped places with defeated Rishi Sunak and basked in the blow of Labour's historic landslide.
He stayed at his London home with wife Victoria last night, but is expected to move into Downing Street soon.
The PM confirmed Ms Reeves as Britain's first woman chancellor, Yvette Cooper as Home Secretary and David Lammy as Foreign Secretary.
Ms Rayner has officially become his Deputy Prime Minister and retained the levelling up, housing and communities brief.
John Healey was named Defence Secretary; Shabana Mahmood Justice Secretary; Wes Streeting Health Secretary; Bridget Phillipson Education Secretary; and Ed Miliband Energy Secretary.
In surprise moves, former government science chief Patrick Vallance - a familiar face from Covid press conferences - has been given a peerage and made science minister.
James Timpson, a campaigner on prisons reform and also head of the key-cutting and shoe repairs firm, has also been elevated and made prisons minister.
But Emily Thornberry has been snubbed for the job of Attorney General, which she shadowed in Opposition. Instead a close ally of Sir Keir, Richard Hermer KC, has been handed the role.
After 649 of the 650 Commons seats declared Labour has a majority of 176.
Labour had 412 seats and the Tories 121, the worst result in the Conservative Party's history.
The Liberal Democrats won 71 seats, while Reform netted five.
A recount in the last seat left to declare: Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire; will not start until 10.30am on Saturday, delaying the final result of the General Election.
In his first speech on Downing Street, Sir Keir said the British people had voted 'decisively for change'.
He said the country could 'move forward together' as Labour took office following 14 years of Conservative rule.
Mr Streeting posted on social media last night: 'I have just spoken over the phone with the BMA junior doctors committee, and I can announce that talks to end their industrial action will begin next week.
'We promised during the campaign that we would begin negotiations as a matter of urgency, and that is what we are doing.'
Pat McFadden, who played a central role in shaping Labour's election campaign and was named Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said the new Cabinet would meet on Saturday.
He told BBC Radio 4 that Sir Keir would have to quickly allocate responsibilities and 'give his new Cabinet their marching orders and then there's big international events coming.
'We have a Nato summit next week. That will be his first moment on the international stage. And while he's doing that, he will want his new Cabinet to get on with it pretty quickly.'
He said high on Sir Keir's agenda will be the six first steps Labour has set out: delivering economic stability, cutting NHS waiting times, launching a new border security command, setting up Great British Energy, cracking down on anti-social behaviour, and recruiting 6,500 new teachers.
Keir Starmer will gather his senior ministers in Downing Street this morning on his first full day, as well as holding a press conference around lunchtime
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrive for Cabinet today
Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband in Downing Street today
John Healey and Lisa Nandy were also at Cabinet this morning
Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds in Downing Street today
Transport Secretary Lou Haigh in Downing Street for the first Cabinet meeting today
The new chief whip Alan Campbell in Downing Street today
Sir Keir and wife Victoria were clapped into Downing Street yesterday (pictured), but Labour's victory is being dubbed a 'loveless landslide' and a 'super meh-jority'
Attorney General Richard Hermer arrives at Downing Street in London last night
Staff were polishing up the famous Downing Street door today as the new government settles in
Just days after his appointment, Sir Keir will be propelled onto the international stage, jetting to Washington DC for the Nato leaders' summit, where discussions will include support for Ukraine.
He is also due to host the European Political Community summit in the UK on July 18.
The PM and Mr Biden and discussed their commitment to the special relationship between the UK and US, protecting the gains of the Good Friday Agreement and support for Ukraine.
Sir Keir also spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and reassured him of the 'unwavering commitment' and said the UK would continue supplying defensive support.
He had calls Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
He also talked to Irish premier Simon Harris, who accepted an invitation to visit Downing Street on July 17 and Scottish First Minister John Swinney.
