PM kicks off Conservatives General Election campaign in Erewash but faces question scrutiny

The Prime Minister has kicked off the Conservatives General Election campaign in Erewash.

Rishi Sunak says that voters have a clear choice as to who they want to deliver a secure future for the country. He pointed to the latest inflation figures, saying his plan for the economy is working and he said that the Conservatives have a track record of delivering in communities such as Ilkeston and referenced borough MP Maggie Throup.

"The new Community Diagnostic Centre, Ilkeston Community Hospital, which is getting people the tests, the checks, the scans they need, quicker, Maggie has campaigned successfully for investment in her local community and you've got the Towns Fund in Long Eaton and also the cultural investment as well, so that is evidence that this Conservative Government is backing Maggie to deliver investment in her community."

Meanwhile, the Prime Minster has been criticised by Labour after two Conservative councillors asked him questions at the campaign event in Ilkeston. Mr. Sunak chose the base of locally based haulage firm to start his campaign and spoke with around 50 employees, but according to the BBC, two questions put to the PM were asked by members of his own party wearing high-vis jackets. Labour said the Prime Minister was running scared of the electorate but in response, the Conservatives say that there was no control over who could ask a question.

But as part of the question session, he suggested that voting for the Labour Party would take the country back to "square one"

An election will be held on July 4th, after long and continued speculation about when the date would be. The decision taken on May 22nd came as a surprise... since many political commentators expected the government to wait until Autumn to coincide with a new budget.

Some of the questions asked by staff include:

"When are PIP reforms going to begin?"

Summarised response - not a full quote: "11 million fit notes were issued last year, of which 94% signed people off work completely so the current system isn't working. Reforming whether GPs can issue them due to the personal relationship many patients have with their GP. When [Rishi] was chancellor he saw people only had to work nine hours a week to claim full benefits and clearly something wasn't right. Now we've changed it so you have to work at least half of a full-time job."

"I'm a primary education teacher from Erewash, how are you going to increase the budget for schools and support staff"

Summarised response - not a full quote: "The best way to make sure everyone has an amazing life is to provide them with an amazing education. We've made sure the school budget has risen... per pupil, there's more money going in than ever in history. We need to focus on standards. We introduced a new policy opposed by the Labour Party, and now our English schoolchildren are the best readers in the Western world. The thing [Rishi] is proudest of is that. It's not just about the money, it's about making sure we focus on the things that matter."