In Labour’s final broadcast before the local elections, brave veterans and their families warn the impact of the Iran war would be ‘ten times worse’ under Reform or the Tories
Brave veterans and families of military personnel have warned that the impact of the Iran war would be “ten times worse” under Reform UK or the Tories.
In a powerful Labour political broadcast ahead of Thursday’s local elections, relatives of those in the armed forces voice their fear that their loved ones could’ve been “blindly” sent into conflict in the Middle East by Nigel Farage or Kemi Badenoch. The party leaders have faced criticism in recent months after flip-flopping on their position on the Iran war.
Tearful veteran Sue Dundon, from Kent, who served in the Women’s Royal Naval Service and whose grandson now serves, raised fears the Reform UK leader would be happy to send young people like her grandchild to war without a plan.
Calling on people to put their faith in Keir Starmer and vote Labour this week, she told the Mirror: “I genuinely fear for what Nigel Farage would do to our country if he’s given the chance. Keir Starmer has shown real leadership both at home and abroad – and particularly on the war in Iran and on the cost of living. He’s delivering change, not offering anger or easy answers like Farage. On Thursday I would urge you to choose unity over division.”
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During Labour’s three-and-a-half-minute political broadcast, shared with The Mirror, Sue added: “My grandson, he’s taken on the same service to his King and to his country. Nigel Farage? I think he would be quite happy to throw our young men and women that serve our country into something which could actually cost lives.”
As her voice cracked with emotion, Sue continued: “I still feel that my Commander in Chief is King Charles and we have a service to our country. And I still serve my country today and I will always serve my country but I couldn’t serve under a man like Farage.”
Kate from Yorkshire, whose son is a corporal and whose son-in-law is a captain, said: “My son was on notice to go on a deployment quite quickly and I presumed it would be in the Middle East, and it would have just been awful.
“Thank goodness that neither Farage nor Badenoch were in control, sending us into a war over which they had no control. They are not thinking about the individuals serving and they are not thinking about their families.”
She praised Keir Starmer’s steady leadership as Prime Minister during times of crisis, continuing: “We’ve all endured the cost of living crisis and seen prices and inflation going up, and I think we were just beginning to turn a corner.
“And if we would have been led into war by Badenoch and Farage, then things would only be 10 times worse. I think Keir Starmer, at the the time of crisis that we faced and are still facing, he’s been the best leader that we could possibly have had.”
And Michael, who served in the Royal Air Force for 23 years after joining when he was 18, hit out at Mr Farage and Ms Badenoch for wanting to “blindly follow America into another unplanned conflict”.
He said: “What I think about Badenoch and Farage planning to blindly follow America into another unplanned conflict is a failure in leadership. If I was still serving, to put my family through that again, it’d be more turmoil, but what would it achieve?”
Michael, who lives in South Wales and was a life-long Tory voter up until the 2024 General Election, warned the cost of conflict is “immeasurable” as he criticised the Conservatives’ handling of the public finances. He said: “I was so disillusioned and a sense of betrayal about the mismanagement and destruction of the economy under the Tory party.
“They didn’t care about the people on the ground doing all the work, and there’s no way in hell if they’re in position of leadership again, they would change that mindset. It’s in their DNA. The country is trying to find a way to move forward, and the cost of conflict is immeasurable.”
In the clip, airing on TV on Tuesday evening, Mr Starmer added: “Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch wanted to jump into the war with both feet without thinking through the consequences. I did as I will always do – what is right for Britain.
“I know this period of global instability will be unsettling for so many people but I know that the British people always rise to the challenge. That’s the Britain I know, the Britain I’m so proud to lead, and my Labour government will be with you every step of the way.”
The PM continued: “Making the call as to whether to put our Armed Forces into harm’s way is the most important decision any Prime Minister will ever have to take. This is not our war, and we will not be dragged into it.”
Mr Starmer is seeking to focus on his positive performance on the world stage ahead of crunch local elections this week. Voters will go to polls across parts of England and the devolved administrations in Wales and Scotland on Thursday. The Greens and Reform are expected to make huge gains, while Labour is expected to suffer devastating blows in areas it has held power for decades.
Over the weekend, the PM warned Labour MPs against descending into “political infighting” like the years of the Tories amid swirling speculation over his leadership. He has vowed not to get distracted from his focus on the impact of the Iran war on the cost of living.
When the war broke out, Ms Badenoch warned the government that there was “no point wanting action to make the world a safe place while being too scared to stand by and watch others”.
Two days later, she said: “I would say to Labour MPs, we are in this war whether they like it or not. What is the prime minister waiting for?” Less than a week after that, the Tory leader shamelessly rowed back, saying she “never said we should join” the war and was only talking about support for US/ Israeli actions.
Mr Farage also initially hit out at the Government for failing to join the initial wave of US-Israeli strikes. But the Reform UK leader later performed a screeching U-turn, telling journalists: “Let’s not get involved in another foreign war.”
A Conservative spokesman said: “Yet again the Prime Minister is misleading the public, just as he has over appointing Mandelson. Kemi never said she wanted to join the war, she just wanted to ensure our brave troops stationed abroad could disable the Iran-backed terror groups firing at them.”
A Reform spokesman said: “This is a last ditch attempt by a failing Prime Minister to attempt and distract from his pitiful track record in office which voters will see right through on election day this Thursday.
“We have been clear that we don’t see a case for the UK to be deploying our personnel in this conflict especially when our allies have not asked us to. Reform will always put British interests first and we want to focus on issues facing the British people.”