UK Labour leader Keir Starmer announced that the UK will not rejoin the EU, the single market, or the customs union as long as he is prime minister, in one of his strongest promises to date, meaning that he won't be pursuing any tight ties with Europe. 

Starmer, when asked about the UK returning to the EU or the market, said, “No. I don’t think that that is going to happen. I’ve been really clear about not rejoining the EU, the single market or the customs union – or [allowing a] return to freedom of movement.”

Additionally, he said on Wednesday that he intends to push for an extension of the legislative session after the election to get more time to pass legislation before the summer.

“How much legislation we will be through by the end of July I think is questionable, because the timetable is very tight, although it seems obvious to me that we’ll have to extend the timetable. We will be working very hard,” he said. 

With less than a day until polls close, Starmer has mainly steered clear of discussing the EU during the campaign as Labour looks to learn from its mistakes from 2019.

He reiterated his view that Labour could reach better trading arrangements with the EU in certain industries, noting, “I do think we could get a better deal than the botched deal we got under Boris Johnson on the trading front, in research and development and on security."

During his first days in office, Starmer will probably have to deal with a number of issues, one of which is the overcrowding in Britain's jails, which the Institute for Government said on Wednesday might be resolved by reducing average sentences.

Starmer said he was open to considering it.

“In terms of the specific things that we will do, we’ll have to wait and see what that is, but I can’t stand here and pretend to you or everybody else that we can build a prison in 24 hours after the election result is called... We have to get on with the hard yards of sorting this mess out, but it is one massive mess.”

A new age of 'hope'

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Starmer has already started to discuss the long-term difficulties that a Labour government will face, such as addressing the threat posed by right-wing populism.

He expressed to reporters that he would be willing to work across party lines to counter the appeal of parties like Reform UK since he considered it part of his role as a progressive leader. 

“The very many challenges here in Europe and across the world will have to be met, in my view, by progressive answers. And it falls to us to make that argument – and to work with others to make that argument," Starmer said.

As millions of people get ready to cast ballots in a general election that could result in the largest upheaval of British politics in a decade, Starmer has heralded a "new age of hope and opportunity."

Starmer may be upping the ante as the UK's general elections are due to occur on Thursday and as forecasts predict a major loss for Conservatives, ending Sunak's time in office. 

On July 4, voters are expected to hit the polls to elect 650 members of parliament, essentially determining the composition of the House of Commons and the next government. 

Foreign Policy reported that projections indicate a landslide loss for Sunak, making him the first incumbent premier to lose in his own district, as well as the Conservatives, who are expected to lose more than two-thirds of their seats in parliament. 

Consequently, amid intense competition between the Conservative and Labour parties, Labour leader Keir Starmer is expected to take the win. 

Two days ago, former UK PM Boris Johnson made his first and only appearance ahead of the general elections, with no mention of Rishi Sunak's performance as prime minister.

During an unexpected appearance at a Tory rally in Chelsea, the former prime minister pointed fingers at Keir Starmer for trying to “usher in the most leftwing Labour government since the war,” adding that he would raise taxes and that he would fail to confront Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Johnson took a jab at Starmer, saying that it was "way past Keir Starmer's bedtime" and thanking everyone who stayed for the late event at the National Army Museum. Meanwhile, the sole reference to Sunak was to thank him for his invitation.

Commenting on the Labour Party, he said, “They can achieve nothing in this election except to usher in the most leftwing government since the war with a huge majority, and we must not let it happen.”