Starmer pledges crackdown on crime in bid to reboot premiership

Keir Starmer will attempt to reset his premiership with a series of pledges to show he is "delivering change", including 13,000 extra neighbourhood police and a named "bobby on every beat".

- Guardian staff

In a speech Labour hopes will set out the "next phase" of government, the prime minister will detail half a dozen "milestone" targets covering living standards, NHS backlogs, secure energy, housebuilding and children's readiness for school.

As part of a promise to crack down on crime and antisocial behaviour, he will say that every neighbourhood in England and Wales will have a named, contactable police officer. Each police force will also have an antisocial behaviour lead tasked with devising ways to tackle concerns raised by residents and businesses.

Starmer will pledge 13,000 more neighbourhood police, Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) and special constables by 2029, with an additional £100m of funding.

"These officers must demonstrably spend time on visible patrol and not be taken off the beat to plug shortages elsewhere," he will say.

The boost would bring the police workforce above its 2010 peak.

After ministers were accused of blindsiding businesses with a big increase in employer national insurance contributions in the budget, the heads of three high-street retailers - Asda, Co-op and McDonald's - endorsed the "neighbourhood policing guarantee".

The promise will prompt comparisons with the Blair-era "tough on crime" slogan. Many of the plans were first outlined by Labour last year.

The attempted reboot - labelled Starmer's "plan for change" - follows a rocky first five months for the government.