Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer clash on tax and NHS in head-to-head debate

One dividing moment from last night’s debate was a disagreement on private healthcare.

Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer were asked a “yes or no question” – if they had a loved one “on a long waiting list for surgery, would you, if you felt that that was the only way forward, use private healthcare?”

Six things to know about last night’s debate

Didn’t catch the leaders debate between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer last night? Or need a recap? Here are some key takeaways from the first head-to-head of the election campaign:

The prime minister went on the attack

Despite his party having been in power for 14 years, at times Sunak sounded like the man in opposition, repeatedly challenging his Labour counterpart for answers over what he would do

Starmer invoked Liz Truss to hit back

The Labour leader tried to pull the focus back to the Tory record in government, including the former PM’s ill-fated 49-day premiership

They embraced the personal

They traded barbs over what they did before politics, talking about their own backstories

They differed on private healthcare

Both were asked whether they would use private healthcare if a loved one were on a long waiting list for surgery – Sunak said yes, Starmer said no

Sunak really wanted to talk about tax

He repeatedly claimed Labour would put up taxes by £2,000. Initially, Starmer did not directly respond, but then dismissed it as a “false readout” from “pretend Labour policies”

They struck different tones on the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)

Asked if he would pull the UK out if flights carrying asylum seekers to Rwanda were halted, Sunak said he would choose the UK’s security over a foreign court if forced to choose. But Starmer offered a defence of the convention

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