Sir Keir Starmer has brutally told Kemi Badencoh that she risks facing the same fate as Liz Truss.
The prime minister warned the Tory leader, who has only been in post for three months, that “if she keeps on like this she is going to be the next lettuce” over her objections to the government’s Employment Bill.
The bill aims to upgrade workers’ rights by tackling poor working conditions. If passed through parliament, it will end “exploitative” zero-hour contracts and fire and rehire practices while establishing rights to bereavement and parental leave.
Badenoch, however, called it a “playground for lawyers”.
“Part one of the bill means a new employee could start a job in the morning and take their employer to the tribunal in the afternoon. It is no wonder that this bill has been called an adventure playground for lawyers,” she said in PMQs.
She added: “This bill is terrible for business but it is great employment for lawyers. I know the prime minister loves the legal profession, but he needs to stop being a lawyer and start being a leader.”
But Keir Starmer hit back, saying: “I know she likes straight talking, she’s talking absolute nonsense.
“She knows, and anyone who knows anything about employment law knows, you can’t start a job in the morning and go to a tribunal in the afternoon.
“We know she’s not a lawyer, she’s clearly not a leader. If she keeps on like this, she’s going to be the next lettuce.”
Liz Truss, Britain’s shortest-serving prime minister with just 49 days in office, became forever linked to lettuces after the Daily Star famously placed an iceberg lettuce in a blonde wig to see if it would outlast her tenure in No 10.
Related: Government could charge BBC licence fee for people who only use Netflix