British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will become the first UK leader in 15 years to address the annual meeting of Britain’s trade unions. Starmer’s speech, scheduled for Tuesday, September 10, 2024 at the seaside resort of Brighton, is viewed as a significant move by his Labour party, signaling its return to government after nearly 15 years of Conservative rule.
The Trade Union Congress (TUC), representing over 5.5 million workers, last heard from a sitting Prime Minister in 2009 when Gordon Brown addressed the conference. In his speech, Starmer will urge unions and businesses to collaborate to revive Britain’s economy. He aims to shift from the traditional adversarial stance of “business versus worker” and “public versus private.”
Labour, which returned to power promising to end strikes and provide fair wages for public sector workers, has already implemented above-inflation pay rises and plans to renationalize the railways. It has also proposed new regulations to ban exploitative practices like “fire and rehire” and zero-hours contracts.
However, some tensions have emerged between the new government and major unions over financial policies, such as the decision to cut winter fuel benefits for 10 million elderly people, which has led to criticism from union leaders.
The speech is expected to underline Labour’s commitment to balancing the nation’s economic challenges while supporting workers’ rights.
