The Tories tried to skewer Keir Starmer's Brexit voting record and it was a massive self own | indy100

Keir Starmer criticises Boris Johnson's 'lack of influence' over Nato

Indy

The Conservative's attempt to skewer Keir Starmer over his plan for Brexit has well and truly backfired.

Yesterday, the leader of the opposition set out a five-point plan to "make Brexit work" in which he pledged to sort out the Northern Ireland protocol, cut down on paperwork, support services and scientists, seek a security pact and invest in the UK.

Sounds reasonable but Brexit is Boris Johnson's thing, and given how much he bangs on about it during sessions of PMQs, it is clear he is very proud of it indeed.

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And so the salty Tory party responded to a Labour graphic outlining their plan and called Starmer out for not supporting Brexit in its first instance. They said:

\u201c\u274c Keir Starmer voted to block Brexit 48 times.\n\n\u2705 Conservatives got Brexit done and we're seizing the opportunities\u201d
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) 1656941852

We aren't quite sure what point they were trying to make. By "making Brexit work", Starmer is acknowledging both that the public voted for the policy and that it *isn't* working. So that he didn't want it to happen is pretty irrelevant.

So people let the party know just that, and pointed out just how bad Brexit has been:

\u201c@Conservatives Boris Johnson voted both for and against Theresa May\u2019s Brexit deal.\n\nConservatives were an absolute shambles of confusion in 2019.\n\nAnd you picked a Brexit deal that you\u2019re trying to unpick now.\n\nWhat an expensive waste of everyone\u2019s time this whole sorry Brexit saga has been.\u201d
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) 1656941852

\u201c"Only Remainers go on and on about Brexit these days. Conservatives have moved on and don't talk about it any longer."\u201d
— Nick Tyrone (@Nick Tyrone) 1656951412

\u201c@Conservatives You\u2019re going to campaign on the back of Brexit?!\u201d
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) 1656941852

\u201cBrexit has meant that many of the best academics have left the UK.\n\nI suppose you could suggest that is creating opportunities, but that would be a very weird way to look at it.\n\nOur universities and our country are certainly poorer because of it.\u201d
— Kit Yates (@Kit Yates) 1657007280

\u201c@supertanskiii @Conservatives Its not even true. https://t.co/oleOeDZIA7\u201d
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) 1656941852

\u201cWhen the Tories do a better job of selling Starmer to the electorate than he does himself.\u201d
— Chris Kendall \ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@Chris Kendall \ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1656963489

\u201cGiven the state of Brexit polling at the moment I think Labour may just run this exact same ad under the heading, "Remember he tried".\u201d
— Dmitry Grozoubinski (@Dmitry Grozoubinski) 1656947522

\u201cKeir Starmer voted 48 times to stop us doing something stupid and harmful\n\nBut we did it anyway, and it was so bad that only this month we had to pass legislation to let us break international law in an effort to undo it.\n\nConservatives: machine-gunning both feet since May 2010.\u201d
— Russ Jones (@Russ Jones) 1656957117

Another swing and a miss from the Tories.

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