Words and phrases are the way politicians get ideas out of their heads and into voters’ minds. Done right, those words and phrases can echo down the decades. Think “hand of history upon our shoulder” from Tony Blair during the Good Friday Agreement negotiations in 1997, or “this lady’s not for turning” as Margaret Thatcher fought to establish her Premiership in 1980.

Such iconic words are not always entirely planned – Blair followed his quip with an insistence it was no time for soundbites and later claimed the hand of history was spontaneous – and it’s not always possible to be certain phrases have been used before. It’s partly why the power of words is also why they can land politicians in hot water.

Keir Starmer launched immigration reforms this week by warning that without control over Britain’s borders, we risk becoming an ‘island of strangers’. Many in Labour are very uneasy about clamping down on migration, despite every opinion poll making crystal clear that most voters are deeply concerned about the volume of people arriving on these shores, and are horrified at the PM’s language.

Critics claim Starmer is echoing the infamous “rivers of blood” speech by Enoch Powell - made in 1968 and seen as a trigger for racist attacks – because Powell talked of white Britons who “found themselves made strangers in their own country.”

The Prime Minister’s team is desperately trying to distance itself from these parallels, insisting the use of the word “strangers” is no more than a coincidence. Instead, Starmer’s No10 insists it is an “intensely Labour” position which echoes former Home Secretary Roy Jenkins.

Nigel Farage added fuel to the fire during Prime Minister’s Questions, congratulating Starmer: “We at Reform - a party that is alive and kicking - very much enjoyed your speech on Monday. You seem to be learning a great deal from us.” Farage knows perfectly well Labour’s left-leaning members will recoil and drive splits in the Government.

Starmer’s judgement is clearly he must respond to public worry over immigration. In time, he may find turning his focus to Reform’s favourite subject will just keep Farage in the headlines.

(Photo provided by the Telegraph)