Jamie Carragher issues warning to Keir Starmer: ‘Deliver on your word’

Former Liverpool and England footballer says people in city would rather play for Man United than support the Tories

Jamie Carragher has warned Sir Keir Starmer “you’re going to have a problem” if he fails to deliver on his pledges.

The former Liverpool and England star said the Labour leader should not have promised not to speak to The Sun before then going on to write for and give interviews to the publication. The city has long-boycotted the newspaper over its coverage of the Hillsborough disaster, in which 96 Liverpool supporters were unlawfully killed.

In a wide-ranging interview with news site Unherd, the footballer-turned-pundit said: “Liverpool will always be Labour” but warned the city would not tolerate leaders who said one thing and did another.

Carragher said Sir Keir, like his predecessor Sir Tony Blair, was “almost a Tory”, but added, “being really Left-wing is not going to get you into power”.

And he said: “I’m not sure there could be anything worse than being a Tory. I think people around here would rather I played for Man United. I’m serious.”

Carragher’s interview comes after Sir Keir used his Labour conference speech to appeal to disaffected Conservative voters to join Labour.

The Labour leader rolled up his sleeves for his crucial conference speech – pledging to repair a “crumbling” Britain with a host of new towns and a new approach to economic growth, led by a renewed party.

Carragher said he does not think “Liverpool has ever been as bad”, blaming Conservative government failures and Covid. “That’s not just a Liverpool thing, of course,” he said.

He added: “And I think that’s why people become disenfranchised with the government — the Tories have been in a long time, and we’re still seeing these problems in a lot of working-class cities.”

Jamie Carragher said Starmer would need to stick to his word to prove he is worthy of Liverpudlian votes (Getty Images)

Addressing criticism of Sir Keir for not being radical enough to enact change, Carragher said it was “better to win and have the chance to actually implement policies that will help people in these areas rather than being a protest party just fighting against the Tories”.

He added: “It’s been proven, certainly with Jeremy Corbyn, that being real left-wingers, there’s very little chance that you’re ever going to get into government. You become known as a protest party, really.”

But, hitting out at the Labour leader for his contact with The Sun, Carragher said he should never have said “I won’t speak to The Sun”.

Sir Keir had promised not to give interviews to the paper during his leadership campaign at a hustings in the city in January 2020.

He has since been interviewed by and has written for the paper.

“If you give your word to people in Liverpool and you don’t deliver, you’re always going to have a problem — whether or not it’s speaking to The Sun, which is obviously a big no-no in this city,” Carragher added.