Election latest: England star's switch from right to left made Starmer 'very nervous' (2024)

With the election just two days away, thoughts are starting to turn to who might be in a potential Starmer cabinet.

Some shadow cabinet members, such as shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves, are all but certain to be appointed if they win their seats and Labour win a majority on Thursday.

But rumours are swirling that David Lammy, who has been shadow foreign secretary since November 2021, may not be appointed to the top Foreign Office job.

Sir Keir Starmer was asked about those rumours by the BBC's Chris Mason, but the Labour leader refused to comment.

"I'm not naming a cabinet two days before the election, which isn't won," he said.

"We have to stay focused until 10pm on Thursday, because it will come down to quite narrow margins. The polls don't predict the future."

Certain constituencies are "very, very tight", he said, adding the party has to be "absolutely laser focused as we go into the last few days".

As Rishi Sunak said yesterday, the jobs of prime minister and England manager are similar in that just about everyone has an opinion on how you're doing it.

Sir Keir Starmer is no exception, it seems.

Speaking to the BBC, the Labour leader was asked what he made of a tactical switch made by Gareth Southgate during England's rather nervy 2-1 win over Slovakia at the Euros on Sunday.

The England boss moved Bukayo Saka, a star man for Sir Keir's Arsenal, from the right-hand side to the left to help make room for Chelsea's Cole Palmer.

Sir Keir, a keen footballer and Arsenal season ticket-holder, said seeing Saka play at left-back made him "very nervous".

"He actually did start in his early days at Arsenal playing as a left-back so you could see the logic in it," he admitted.

"But I think he's been one of the major outlets on the right."

England go up against Switzerland in the quarter-finals on Sunday.

Former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson will face more sex offence charges when he appears in court tomorrow.

He is now being accused of a total of 18 offences.

He was facing 11 before.

His wife Lady Eleanor Donaldson is to face five charges, up from four.

Donaldson, 61, resigned as DUP leader after being charged in March.

Back then, he said he'll be "strenuously contesting" all charges.

Born in County Down in the 1960s, he was raised during the Troubles and has been a vocal campaigner for unionism.

He came to the fore after the UK left the EU for his opposition to the Northern Ireland Protocol - which he believed undermined Northern Ireland'splace in the United Kingdom.

One of our top stories today is the latest in a series of investigations by economics and data editor Ed Conway on how Russia continues to keep Western powers hooked on its gas supplies.

British firms are among those helping to keep Russian gas flowing into Europe, including an obscure company based in Glasgow.

You can read Ed's full report by tapping here.

We also asked Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer about it on the campaign trail earlier.

Referring to Ed's report, our political correspondent Serena Barker-Singh asked him about Europe's reliance on Russian gas imports - with UK companies facilitating the trade through insurance and ownership:

By Laura Bundock, news correspondent

Two days before the polls open and there is still a sizeable group of undecided voters on the Sky News YouGov panel.

With a last political push from the parties, the undecided votes could be critical this week.

That's because significantly more of this group backed the Conservatives in the 2019 election.

Among the former Tory voters on our panel, there is a split on who to vote for this time.

Some are switching to Labour.

"Even though Conservatives do seem like they have clear plans, their clear plans don't seem genuine anymore," said one voter.

You can read more from Sky News below:

By Mark Kleinman, City editor

The Conservative Party will on Wednesday unveil a letter signed by scores of small business-owners in a last-ditch bid to convince undecided voters that they can be trusted as the stewards of Britain's economy.

Sky News understands the Tories are planning to publish a letter signed by between 100 and 150 SME bosses that will argue that a Labour government would risk damaging their business.

Sources said the letter was expected to be released on Wednesday, the final day before Britain goes to the polls.

Neither the text of the letter nor the names of the signatories were clear on Tuesday.

Sir Keir Starmer has risked the wrath of the Tories by suggesting it's not just family he'll want to make time for if he becomes prime minister.

The Labour leader is a keen footballer and wants to keep it up.

"I'm determined to be able to play five-a-side," he told Times Radio.

"Whether I'll be able to play on a Sunday or not, I don't know.

"I suspect I'll be busy."

Sir Keir has already said he wants to keep Friday evenings free for time with his wife and children. He currently clocks off work at 6pm that day.

That ambition has drawn the ire of Conservative ministers, who've suggested it's a sign he won't take the job of PM seriously.

Sir Keir acknowledged he likely won't be able to play football "as regularly" should he end up in Number 10 on Friday.

But he said he was similarly determined to keep going to The Arsenal with his son and friends.

Sir Keir, like his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn, is a big Gunners fan.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was asked earlier about a Reform UK candidate's decision to suspend her campaign and back the Tories over concerns that many of the other candidates standing are bigoted.

"A vote for Reform is just a vote to put Keir Starmer in Number 10," he said, reacting to the news.

He was pressed on whether he agrees with Georgie David, who was the Reform candidate for West Ham and Beckton, in saying the "vast majority of [Reform] candidates are indeed racist, misogynistic and bigoted".

The prime minister said he'd already addressed the "appalling comments" made by Reform campaigners last week, adding that "speaks to the culture" in Nigel Farage's party.

Mr Sunak also said the postal vote delay situation needs resolving quickly as every vote counts.

Royal Mail has blamed the government for voters not receiving their postal ballots ahead of Thursday's election - and said there is "no backlog" in its system.

Second breakfasts are exciting enough, but imagine being able to have threebreakfasts.

Rishi Sunak lived the dream of every hobbit from The Lord Of The Rings this morning by doing just that, saying it helped him feel "energised" at this late stage of the election campaign.

"How often do you get to have three breakfasts before 10am?" he told reporters accompanying him in Beaconsfield.

"That's only good news."

One of them was a McDonald's breakfast wrap.

He previously revealed it was his favourite item on its menu, though it had been discontinued when he said it.

The sausage, egg, bacon, potato, and cheese concoction returned from a four-year hiatus earlier this year.

"I love a comeback," the PM said as he tucked into one on the Tory campaign battle bus this morning.

Presumably his other breakfasts were a Twix and some Haribo.

Whether he enjoys a comeback in the polls is another matter.

Lord Mann, a Labour peer who was appointed antisemitism adviser by Theresa May, has warned it is "so dangerous" for Sir Keir Starmer's "right to family time" to be questioned.

He said: "The attack on Keir Starmer for asserting his right to family time on a Friday night, as he has done for many, many years, is so dangerous.

"So insidious from those aware of why he chooses to be with his family specifically on Friday evenings."

He pointed out that Friday nights had a wider cultural significance within the Jewish community, likening it to Sundays in Christian communities.

“There’s a reason parliament does not sit on Sundays,” he said.

Sir Keir's wife Victoria is of Jewish heritage.