Keir Starmer has defended his leadership of the Labour and insisted he has changed the party to make it “face the voters”.
He was responding to Guardian columnist Owen Jones who accused him of being “a professional political conman” who was not someone “anyone can trust”.
“He has brazenly, overtly, delivered the exact opposite of what he said he would be as Labour leader,” Jones said.
Many on the left of the party believe Starmer misled Labour members during the 2019 leadership contest by promising to continue much of Jeremy Corbyn’s agenda, before shifting to the centre once in office.
Starmer made ten pledges during the contest, including that “public services should be in public hands”.
Appearing on Channel 5′s Jeremy Vine programme on Wednesday, Starmer said: “I’m not focused on Owen. I’m sorry Owen. I know Owen. I like Owen.
“I’m focused on entirely on winning the next general election. We can talk about what we are going to do uphill and down dale. Until we win an election we won’t do it.
He added: “Owen was a cheerleader at the last attempt and we failed. If we carry on like that we are letting millions of people down.
“I took a decision not take the Labour Party from where when I took over, which was the worst general election defeat since 1935, change the Labour Party, make it face the voters and talk about what they wanted to talk about.
Starmer said he was offering “practical ideas” to help people with the cost of living crisis including energy bills. “We desperately need a change,” he said.
It comes after Sharon Graham, the leader of the Unite union, told Starmer to “get a spine” and “stick up for workers”.
The Labour leader has also put his party on a war footing in case the new prime minister - liked to be Liz Truss - decides to call a snap election.