Wes Streeting mocks Tories over ‘sleepy’ name-calling attacks on Starmer

Wes Streeting said Starmer, who plays five-a-side football regularly, would ‘take out’ Sunak’s ankles in seconds on a football pitch. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA

Wes Streeting has mocked the Conservatives for trying to portray Keir Starmer as old and doddery, joking that the TV debates between the Labour leader and Rishi Sunak should be replaced with a one-to-one football challenge, in which Starmer would “take out” Sunak’s ankles, to settle the issue.

The shadow health secretary said he was “pretty disgusted” at some of the Conservatives’ campaign tactics, notably anonymous quotes calling Starmer “Sir Sleepy” and intimating that at 61 he was less vigorous than the 44-year-old prime minister.