ITV News Political Correspondent Harry Horton spoke to the prime minister at the G20 in South Africa

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has told ITV News his government has restored respect to politics since coming into power.

When he came into Downing Street in July 2024, Starmer promised to “restore honesty and integrity to government”.

However, since then, it’s fair to say it’s been a stormy ride for him and the Labour Party.

Shortly after becoming prime minister, he attracted attention for the scale of the gifts he had been receiving, and more recently in September his deputy Angela Rayner resigned after breaking the ministerial code.

When asked if he could “hand on heart” say that his government had restored respect to politics, Starmer answered, “yes”.

“I’ll tell you why,” he continued. “When I came in, I strengthened the ministerial code. I gave more power to the Independent Advisor.

“And in every case where there’s been any issue, my ministers have referred themselves the Independent Advisor and followed the advice.”

When asked whether he really think that his government has had more integrity than the last, he said the main difference now is that “ministers know that if there’s any issue they must refer themselves in”.

“If you remember what happened before, there was no accepting of responsibility by the then prime minister or the government.

“It’s important that we’re accountable and we are accountable, and that’s why I strengthened the code.”

Starmer deflects questions over his leadership: ‘Every minute that we focus on anything other than cost of living is a wasted minute’

On the issue of his leadership being challenged, Starmer said it’s important that his government stays focused on the cost of living.

He said: “Every minute that we focus on anything other than cost of living is a wasted minute for me, for this government and for the country.”

“I’ve been really clear to everyone that we mustn’t lose focus on the one thing that matters to families and communities across the country above all else, which is the cost of living.

“And that’s why yesterday I was out announcing the next rollout of free breakfast clubs. It’s why we’ve announced the freezing of prescription charges, keeping the freeze on bus fares, bearing down on the cost of living when it comes to free childcare. All these measures are there to alleviate the cost of living.

“When I was growing up, we couldn’t always make ends meet. We sat around the kitchen table and we couldn’t pay our bills. I actually personally know what that feels like.

“And so politics for me is very much about, who have you got in your mind’s eye when you make your decisions?

“I have in my mind’s eye all of your viewers who are struggling with the cost of living, struggling to make ends meet. My job is to build on what we’ve already done to make sure that they feel better off, better support.”

Some Labour MPs have been uncomfortable with some of the language the government used this week around immigration

On Monday, the government announced reforms to overhaul the asylum system, leading to backlash from a number of Labour MPs.

When asked about immigration, the prime minister said: “It is really important that we deal with illegal migration.

“That means working on law enforcement to stop people getting here in the first place, returning those who’ve got no right to be here, and making sure… that we deal with the factors, the pull factors, if you like, that make people come here.”

Starmer is also calling on Nigel Farage to open an investigation as the former leader of Reform UK in Wales was jailed after admitting making pro-Russian statements in the European Parliament for cash.

“Just today we’re seeing the sentencing of the ex leader of reform in Wales. A massive sentence for pro-Russian bribery.

“Nigel Farage needs to launch an investigation into his party to find out how that ever happened in his party and to see what other links there are between his party and Russia.

“And that is the difference between Reform and the Labour Party. We lead on these issues. He needs to now open that investigation urgently.”