PMQs: Keir Starmer goes in on mortgages, but SNP jibes on bankers bonuses will hurt

The Labour U-turn on bankers bonuses was fresh ammunition for the SNP.

For a few weeks now, Sir Keir Starmer has got the better of Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister’s Questions in the face of dire economic forecasts and Tory infighting over the Rwanda scheme.

The Labour leader has managed to damage Mr Sunak by asking questions he can’t answer, combining a focus on detail with lines funny enough to go viral, broadening the reach of his party.

However, at the latest session, Sir Keir struggled to land blows, despite bringing up the real case of an Iceland employee named Phil who is struggling to pay his mortgage.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons.

His question came after Tory MP George Freeman had to stand down from his ministerial role as he couldn’t afford his own house payments. It makes sense as a tactic, referencing relatable problems to an MP being impacted by them.

Sir Keir said: “If the member for Mid-Norfolk [Mr Freeman] on a £120,000 can’t afford this Tory Government, how on earth can people like Phil?”

Unfortunately for the Labour leader, his questions fell flat, perhaps due to the subdued atmosphere on his own benches. It was a stark contrast to the Tory MPs, who cheered Mr Sunak’s response saying the government had given a “tax cut worth hundreds of pounds for someone on an average salary”. It isn’t true, but it was cheered and that’s the real point of PMQs.

The prices of mortgages is a real problem facing millions of people. But like so many of Labour’s criticisms, they have less weight without a contrasting plan or vision to back them up. Whatever the argument at the moment, Mr Sunak can say “tax cuts, what’s Labour’s plan?”. It might not help Mr Sunak’s polling, but it works at PMQs.

It was instead the SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn who enjoyed PMQs the most, mocking Labour twice over Wednesday’s announcement they would not bring back the cap on banker’s bonuses.

Referencing the cost-of-living crisis, Mr Flynn was able to skewer both parties with the same comment, pointing out Labour’s position had once again changed.

Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, had announced the change earlier, in a shock to both Labour MPs and numerous members of the shadow cabinet. The decision was not discussed.

Mr Flynn said: "When the Tories scrapped the cap on bankers bonuses in the autumn during a cost-of-living crisis, the Labour party rightly opposed it. Yet here we are just three months later, and the Labour party support scrapping the cap on bankers bonuses. Shameful.

“But is the Prime Minister comforted by the fact that he is no longer alone in this House on being completely out of touch with public opinion?”.

The line is deeply damaging for the Labour party, which now faces having to explain why they back scrapping the cap, and look to be siding with business rather than the worker.

Mr Flynn has repeatedly used PMQs to attack Labour as much as the Tories, to portray the SNP as the true progressives. A U-turn on bankers bonuses only enforces that narrative.