Six Things We Learned From The ITV Leaders Debate

Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer went head to head in the first leadership debate of the general election campaign on Tuesday night, with an hour of trading blows on live TV.

With the Conservatives trailing Labour by large, double-digit leads in the opinion polls, Sunak was seen as going into the debate under more pressure to perform strongly.

A snap survey from YouGov in the immediate aftermath of the debate suggested the leaders were almost neck and neck, with the Prime Minister every so slightly edging the Labour Party leader by 51 to 49 per cent.

PoliticsHome in partnership with Thinks Insight & Strategy asked numerous swing voters in five key electoral battlegrounds to follow tonight's debate and offer their reactions to it.

Using their responses, as well as our own analysis, here are six things we learned from tonight's head-to-head with just over four weeks to go until polling day on 4 July.

The Prime Minister was on the offensive from the get go, repeatedly accusing Labour of planning to increase taxes, and directly challenging Starmer on what he would do on certain policy issues such as immigration. 

Given the Tory party's position in the opinion polls, it should come as no surprise that Sunak took a combative approach to the debate. There were moments when the Prime Minister seemed like more that of an opposition leader, challenging his opponent to explain how they would make their plans work. 

Barry, a 2019 Tory voter in Bolton, was impressed by the PM's style. “Sunak has put direct questions Starmer’s way and every single time he hasn't answered," he told us.

Host Julie Etchingham had to step in at several moments when the debate got heated and the leaders continued to speak over one another. 

However, while Sunak's