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Keir Starmer Attacks ‘Trivial’ Boris Johnson In Conference Speech

Keir Starmer attacks ‘trivial’ Boris Johnson in conference speech

Keir Starmer condemned Boris Johnson as “trivial” and a “showman” as he brushed off hecklers to deliver a highly personal conference speech aimed at convincing voters Labour is ready for government.

The Labour leader received a string of standing ovations as he delivered his 90-minute speech to a packed hall in Brighton, closing a five-day conference in which his party’s divisions had been on stark display.

He repeatedly pressed home the message that Labour’s priority was now to win the next general election – and was applauded as he listed the achievements of the Blair and Brown governments.

Labour strategists believe the botched exit from Afghanistan and the chaos of this week’s fuel crisis have sparked fresh doubt in voters’ minds about Johnson’s competence.

Starmer accused the government of “ignoring the problem, blaming someone else, then coming up with a half-baked solution”. He ridiculed Johnson’s “levelling up” slogan, saying: “Level up? You can’t even fill up!”

“We have a fuel crisis, a pay crisis, a goods crisis and a cost of living crisis – all at the same time,” Starmer said, urging the prime minister to “either get a grip or get out of the way and let us clear up this mess”.

Starmer was introduced by Lady Lawrence, the mother of the murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence. He was joined in the audience by the parents of Jane Clough, who was killed by her former partner, and contrasted his legal career campaigning against injustice in situations such as theirs to Johnson’s past as a columnist and occasional TV guest.

In stark contrast to Angela Rayner’s controversial branding of Johnson as “scum”, Starmer sought to dismiss the prime minister as “a showman with nothing left to show” and “a trickster who has performed his one trick”.

“It’s easy to comfort yourself that your opponents are bad people. But I don’t think Boris Johnson is a bad man. I think he is a trivial man,” he said.

Starmer was repeatedly heckled by a small number of individuals, some of whom shouted “£15!” in reference to calls for a £15-an-hour minimum wage. He tackled them with a series of prepared putdowns, prompting applause from the majority of the audience in the hall.

Labour divisions were exposed afresh in Brighton after Starmer pushed through changes to the way the party elects its leaders and reselects sitting MPs at the weekend.

Grassroots members also passed a series of radical policy motions, including a demand for a “socialist green new deal” and a £15 minimum wage, which Starmer has said he would not support.

He did use the phrase “green new deal” in his speech, however, as part of a lengthy passage with echoes of Harold Wilson’s “white heat of technology” speech in which he highlighted the potential for transformative new technologies.

Starmer announced what he called a “national mission” to ensure every home in the country was better insulated and cheaper to heat within a decade. Labour calculates the £6bn-a-year plan would enable it to fund grants and low-cost loans to enable 19m homes to be insulated, helping consumers to cut their bills.

The speech was peppered with personal anecdotes about what Starmer called his “two rocks” – family and work – and he embraced high and low culture, from walking onstage to a track by the Brighton DJ Fatboy Slim – with whom Starmer had music lessons as a child – to quoting the poet WH Auden.

“You need not see what someone is doing to know if it is his vocation, you have only to watch his eyes. How beautiful it is, that eye-on-the-object look,” Starmer said, adding that he had seen that look in his toolmaker father.

He repeatedly portrayed Labour as on the side of working people, underlining the values of “work, care, equality and security”.

Starmer’s team believe the fluidity of public opinion means they have a chance of winning the next general election, though they acknowledge they face an uphill struggle against the Tories’ 80-seat majority.

With Labour keen to make gains in Scotland, where it was all but wiped out in the wake of the 2014 independence referendum and has struggled to recover, Starmer attacked Nicola Sturgeon’s record in office and promised Labour would offer a robust defence of the union. “We are more progressive together. We are more secure together. We are a bigger presence in the world together. We are greater as Britain than we would be apart.”

Without naming his predecessor, Starmer firmly distanced himself from the era of Jeremy Corbyn, promising never again to go to the electorate with “a manifesto that is not a serious plan for government” – prompting a heckler to shout: “It was your Brexit policy.”

Some of Starmer’s former shadow cabinet colleagues, including Jon Trickett and Diane Abbott, subsequently pointed out that Starmer had signed off on the manifesto for the 2019 general election, in which the party plunged to its worst defeat since 1935. Asked about this afterwards, Starmer’s spokesperson said: “There is a principle of collective responsibility.”

In a further striking contrast with the Corbyn years, Starmer stressed Labour’s patriotism and led the crowd in a standing ovation for Britain’s armed forces – though not all of those present joined in.

“Here in this conference hall we are patriots,” he said. “When we discuss the fine young men and women who represent all our nations we don’t boo. We get to our feet and cheer.”

Starmer’s team believe the perception that Labour was unpatriotic, or sympathetic to anti-western forces, was an important factor in the loss of scores of former heartlands seats in the last general election.

The Conservatives will gather for their own conference in Manchester this weekend, against the backdrop of petrol shortages, soaring energy bills and fears about the supply of key goods in the run-up to Christmas.

The longest speech? How Starmer compared
Starmer’s conference speech was the longest in recent memory, clocking in at about 90 minutes. His word count was just short of Ed Miliband’s 2014 speech: 8000 words compared with Starmer’s 7,300. A Labour spokesperson claimed Wednesday’s speech took longer to deliver because they had not anticipated the amount of clapping. Here are some of the other longest political speeches:

Ed Miliband, 2014

The former Labour leader gave one of the most memorable party conference speeches as he talked for over an hour without notes. He did miss out a long passage about the economy, for which he was heavily criticised.

Hugh Gaitskell, 1962

The then leader of the opposition gave a very long speech about his aversion to joining the common market. It had more than 10,000 words, but was delivered more quickly, in 83 minutes.

Fidel Castro, 1960

One of the longest ever speeches on the international stage was the Cuban leader’s speech to the United Nations on imperialism and colonialism. It ran to four hours and 29 minutes.

Henry Brougham, 1828

The prize for the longest continuous speech in UK parliament goes to this Whig MP, who spoke for more than six hours on law reform.

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Teenager arraigned for assaulting Corps member, disrupting school activities in Ondo

A teenager, Adesogo Promise, has been arraigned before an Iwaro Oka Magistrate Court for allegedly assaulting a corps member, Akomolafe Dickson, and disrupting academic activities at St. Patrick’s College, Iwaro-Oka in Ondo State.

The prosecution, led by Inspector Kehinde Emmanuel, informed the court that the defendant physically attacked Akomolafe, landing blows on him.

Furthermore, the defendant was accused of obstructing the lawful duty of a police officer, Constable Afolabi Samuel, who was executing an arrest on behalf of the Nigeria Police Divisional Headquarters, Iwaro Oka Akoko. Nigerian home decor ideas

The accused, who was unrepresented by legal counsel, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Presiding over the case, Magistrate B. I. Ikusika ordered the remand of the defendant and adjourned proceedings till April 16, 2025.

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Minister of Livestock Development calls for creation of livestock colleges

The Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Maiha, has advocated for the establishment of specialised colleges for livestock development.

The minister also tasked the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) to intensify research and innovation efforts towards that direction.

The Minister said this when the Executive Secretary of ARCN, Professor Garba Sharubutu, led a delegation to his office.

Maiha stressed the need for dedicated livestock colleges, questioning whether the current agricultural colleges in the country are sufficient for Nigeria’s growing population.

“Are our agricultural colleges sufficient for our population? We must encourage the establishment of dedicated colleges for livestock and animal husbandry,” he stated.

Referencing the transformation agenda for the livestock sector, the Minister pointed out the need for intensive research, breed improvement, disease management, and sustainable feeding practices.

“We want to see more focused research on livestock. We must believe in the sector’s ability to drive impactful change. Our priorities include feed and fodder development, disease and health management, traceability, and genetic improvements across species,” he added.

Maiha also underscored the urgent need for high-level intellectual manpower to meet the sector’s increasing expectations, given the strong capital investments being made.

He revealed that Nigeria has about 417 grazing reserves, which will be converted into communal ranches to reduce unrestricted cattle movement and improve livestock management.

“We are talking of massive regrassing of the countryside and we are not going to rely on the importation of grass varieties. You must give us indigenous grasses that are nutritious enough, that are hardy, tolerant, and drought resistant. This is what we are looking for. If we have ARCN, you must talk to the market.

“It’s not sufficient enough, you get your degree, you are a professor, and you stay in that condition with a swivel chair. Patents. We want patents. We are restructuring the livestock sector to create jobs, generate wealth, and enhance food security. We have many investors coming in, and ARCN must play a central role in this transformation,” he said.

Maiha stated that while agricultural crop research has advanced significantly, livestock research and education must catch up.

He said, “If you look at our colleges of agriculture, most only have one or two departments focused on livestock. We must ensure they are adequately equipped to serve the sector.”

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FG refutes US claim of targeted killings of Christians

FG charges Lagos dredgers, miners on land degradation

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the leadership of Ambassador Yusuf M. Tuggar, has refuted claims of targeted killings of Christians in Nigeria, describing these allegations as misleading and aimed at influencing foreign governments, particularly the United States, to designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).

In a press statement issued on Friday, March 14, and signed by the acting spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, the ministry stated,

“While the Federal Government acknowledges the security challenges in the country, these incidents are not religiously motivated or targeted at any particular faith group.”

The ministry further emphasized that insurgency and banditry, particularly in the predominantly Muslim northern region of Nigeria, are not directed at any specific religious community.

The statement comes amid ongoing reports from the US Congress, which have expressed concerns about religious freedom in Nigeria, leading to the country’s previous designation as a CPC. However, the Nigerian government has consistently rejected these claims, asserting that the security challenges are multifaceted and not rooted in religious persecution.Nigerian home decor ideas

“Nigeria is a multiethnic and multireligious nation with a long history of peaceful coexistence between people of different faiths,” the ministry reiterated, reaffirming the government’s commitment to safeguarding all citizens, regardless of religion, ethnicity, or gender.

The statement clarified that the ongoing security challenges in the country stem from criminality, terrorism, and communal clashes—particularly those between farmers and herders. These issues have been worsened by factors such as climate change, population growth, and competition over land resources, but do not amount to systematic religious persecution.

The ministry outlined the steps taken by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to address the country’s security concerns, which include deploying security forces to conflict-prone areas, enhancing intelligence gathering, and fostering cooperation between various security agencies.

Additionally, the government highlighted community engagement initiatives designed to foster peace and reconciliation across Nigeria.Nigerian home decor ideas

“While noting the progress made in curbing banditry and insurgency, recent military operations have significantly weakened criminal groups,” the statement stated. It also highlighted the government’s approach of combining kinetic and non-kinetic measures—military action alongside dialogue and economic reforms—to address the root causes of insecurity.

The Nigerian government is also focusing on long-term efforts to resolve conflicts related to land use. In this regard, it has established a Ministry of Livestock Development and appointed a Special Adviser and Coordinator on Livestock Reforms to oversee sustainable solutions for pastoral farming, a move aimed at reducing land disputes between farmers and herders.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the international community to verify information before making statements that could escalate tensions within Nigeria.

” It also called on the media, civil society organizations, and foreign partners to refrain from spreading unverified claims that could undermine the country’s unity and stability.

“Nigeria remains a beacon of religious tolerance and coexistence in Africa and is committed to preserving this heritage,” the statement concluded.

The ministry reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to freedom of religion and interfaith harmony, stressing that while the government welcomes constructive dialogue and international support in addressing security challenges, it rejects any attempts to misrepresent the situation, distort narratives, or sow division among Nigerians.

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