Sir Keir Starmer given major boost as Unison announces it is backing him for Labour leader

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Sir Keir Starmer's pitch to succeed Jeremy Corbyn as Labour has been buoyed by the backing of the country's largest union.

Unison issued him its support today, as the race began in earnest following the first party hustings last night, describing him as a candidate who could "win back the trust" of lost voters.

Its general secretary Dave Prentis said: “This is a pivotal time for Labour.

“We believe – if elected by the membership – Keir Starmer would be a leader to bring the party together and win back the trust of the thousands of voters who deserted Labour last month.

“Keir has a clear vision to get Labour back to the winning ways of the past. He is best placed to take on Boris Johnson, hold his government to account and ensure Labour can return to power and once more change working people’s lives for the better.”

Labour MPs are vying to replace Jeremy Corbyn
Reuters/PA/AFP

The decision was taken by the union’s Labour Link committee, which is made up entirely of Labour members.

Labour has already confirmed that Sir Keir has enough MP nominations to go through to the next round of the leadership contest, which entails seeking nominations from constituency Labour branches and affiliated groups, such as unions.

Jeremy Corbyn announced he would stand down after the election defeat
PA

Rebecca Long-Bailey, Jess Phillips, Emily Thornberry, Lisa Nandy and Clive Lewis have all also confirmed there intentions to run.

The new leader is set to be announced following a vote in April and will then replace Mr Corbyn, who announced his departure from the party's helm after its disastrous election performance.

Those running addressed a first party hustings last night, in which Sir Keir said the party needs to “win back our heartlands".

“We need to understand and to address each and every reason we lost at this election, but we also need to win back Scotland, we need to win back seats in Wales, and if you draw a line from London to Bristol and look south we only have a handful seats," Sir Keir said.

“So, we have got a mountain to climb.”

Sir Keir has been tipped as a frontrunner in the race, with a previous YouGov poll predicting he would comfortably come out on top.

However, this was before all the current runners had confirmed and also included Yvette Cooper, who polled in the single digits and has since announced she will not stand for the position.

The poll predicted Sir Keir and Ms Long-Bailey making up the final two, with the former set to then win with 61 per cent to 39.

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