Theresa May says Labour is heading 'back to the past'
The PM says the "pretty shambolic" leaking of Labour's draft manifesto shows the "chaos" that would be unleashed if it wins power.
Thursday 11 May 2017 15:47, UK
Theresa May has insisted Jeremy Corbyn's vision for a Labour government would take the country "back to the past".
The Prime Minister said the "pretty shambolic" showed the "chaos" that would be unleashed if the party wins power on 8 June.
The contains plans to nationalise key industries, beef up trade union rights and plough extra cash into the NHS by raising taxes on high earners.
Mrs May seized on the leak to hammer home her key campaign argument that a Labour government would lead to disarray.
She told Channel 4 News: "I think what we see from the issue around the Labour Party's manifesto is, first of all, it is pretty shambolic the way the manifesto has come out.
"I think that shows the sort of chaos that we would see from a Labour government.
"But, crucially, if you look at what they are suggesting, if you take their manifesto overall, actually, what they are suggesting is taking us back to the past.
"What I'm interested in is dealing with the challenges that we face today but making a better future for this country."
The PM said she was the leader to get the "best deal for this country" on Brexit, and promised a "deep and special partnership" with the European Union.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has admitted the leaking of accounts of his dinner at Number 10 to talk Brexit with Mrs May had been a "serious mistake", although he denied being responsible for the leak.
Mrs May said the incident showed the "tough" negotiations that lay ahead.
"Comments were made, leaks were made, and if you look at what the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker recently said, he said that it was wrong for those leaks to have taken place," she said.
"I think what this overall shows is there will be tough negotiations. That's why we need a strong hand in our negotiations."
The Prime Minister has used Tory grandee Ken Clarke's description of her on Sky News as a "bloody difficult woman" to claim she is the tough negotiator the UK needs.
But asked about the rest of the exchange last summer - where Mr Clarke said she is "not one of the tiny band of lunatics who thinks she can have a sort of glorious economic future outside the single market" - she replied: "I think there are huge opportunities for Brexit."
Pressed on whether Mr Clarke had been wrong, she replied: "No, what I want to do, he talked about the single market, what I want to do in relation to the single market is ensure that we get the best possible deal in terms of access through a comprehensive free trade agreement."
The PM was speaking during a visit to the Young Minds charity in central London.
She chatted to staff on the parental helpline set up to help mothers and fathers with concerns about their children's mental health.