ADMIN
A billionaire who gave £500,000 to the Conservatives ahead of the last general election has told the BBC he will vote Labor for the first time in his life next month.
Phones 4U founder, John Caudwell, described Rishi Sunak as an “absolute moron” and said Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer “really hit the spot with a lot of issues with me”.
The businessman has criticized Labor's plans to levy VAT on private school fees Some of Reform UK's policies are “encouraging”.However, he refused to support Nigel Farage's party on climate change, among other issues.
He refrained from donating money to Labor in this election.
But he added: “In my estimation the Labor Party, as much as I disagree with some of the policies, is absolutely the best for Britain going forward.
“What I see is a Labor Party committed to GDP growth and the environment.
“Without GDP growth you can't look after your social services. And without attention to the environment there won't be a world to look after.”
He praised Sir Keir's efforts to get rid of what he called the “illegitimate left”, claiming he was focused on “extreme socialist policies” rather than “building a richer Britain”.
“We can't tax the rich to help the poor because they will go to Monaco and other places, we have to create real real wealth.”
He added that “I hope well that I am right in my judgment and that they make Britain great again.”
The entrepreneur – who the Sunday Times Rich List recently claimed was worth £1.537 billion – said “historically my thinking about Labor has been very negative” and “I've had to do a lot of soul-searching” to get to the point of comfort with the idea of voting Labour.
John Caudwell has been increasingly critical of the Conservatives in recent months and has been particularly outspoken about the Prime Minister.
“What he did in Covid was wrong. He paid people for furloughs that were all or nothing. He gave them too much the wrong way.
“The criticisms I made of Rishi when he was chancellor, I think were evidenced in the D Day situation,” which he claimed was “a complete lack of judgment”.
He said “until a few months ago I was non-voting” but he met Sir Keir and Sir Tony Blair in January and saw the Labor leader again last Friday after the party's manifesto was published.
He has not given any money to the Labor Party but said “it's very possible” he would in the future “if I think they've done an amazing job.”
Giving his response, Sir Keir said: “I am delighted that John, with such a successful track-record in business, has thrown his support behind the transformed Labor Party that I lead today.”
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