BBC Breakfast host Naga Munchetty didn’t hold back as she confronted Home Secretary Yvette Cooper in a tense on-air exchange, pressing her on Labour’s rocky first year in office.
The morning interview was anything but gentle. Munchetty questioned the government’s direction and unity following several U-turns and the emergence of a new political faction spearheaded by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
“One year’s done, observers have seen three U-turns in the last few weeks, and now you’ve had Zarah Sultana saying she wants to form a new party with the former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. It doesn’t feel like the Labour Party is in a good place,” Munchetty said bluntly.
In response, Ms Cooper acknowledged the challenges but stood firm on the government’s progress: “Well, we are one year on and I think it was one year ago yesterday Keir Starmer stood on the steps of Downing Street and said change won’t happen at the flick of a switch and it will take a while.
“But I also think back and the things my constituents and people across the country were raising at that time. The state of the NHS, it felt like it was about to collapse, the lack of police on our streets and living standards across the country.”
Cooper went on to highlight key achievements in Labour’s first year, despite acknowledging there were both highs and lows:
- A 10-year NHS plan with four million extra appointments
- Falling waiting lists
- 3,000 more neighbourhood police, focusing on town centres
- Wage growth and falling interest rates
- Rising business investment and three new trade deals
- Free school meals extended to an additional half a million children
“So there are a lot of things we’ve done, of course, there is a huge amount to do, of course, a lot of the work has been done trying to put building blocks in place.
Not everything goes right in government but I think we still see huge progress on the things that really matter to working people across the country.”
When asked by Munchetty to rate Labour’s performance out of 10, Ms Cooper declined. The interview came just days after Prime Minister Keir Starmer was forced into a dramatic U-turn on controversial welfare cuts, a decision that left Chancellor Rachel Reeves visibly emotional during Prime Minister’s Questions.
Adding to the political turbulence, Labour MP Zarah Sultana confirmed she was launching a new left-wing party alongside Mr Corbyn, fuelling speculation over Labour’s internal fractures.
As the Labour government marks its first year, the party faces growing scrutiny not just from the opposition but from within its own ranks.
