Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
The writer is a Labour MP and former director of Labour Together, a think-tank
On the face of it, Britain has bucked a global trend. A moderate, centre-left party has roundly beaten a chaotic party of the right. In a single term, Labour has gone from its worst defeat in nearly a century to one of its most commanding majorities. The Conservatives have fewer seats than at any point in their history.
Dig deeper, and Britain is less of an outlier. Big victories often do not last in modern politics; majorities which should be secure are often not. Voters are more volatile and less attached to a political party than ever before. Swings from one election to the next can be dramatic, unpredictable, and uneven. And perhaps most importantly, Britain’s new populist right party, Reform UK, performed especially well in white, working-class constituencies.
This month, I was elected as the MP for Makerfield, which has always had a Labour MP. Yet for decades, Labour’s majority has gradually declined here as the party has lost support among the white working class. This time, the Conservative vote collapsed in my constituency and Reform secured the second-highest vote share in any Labour-held seat.
Locally, there have been ugly scenes. At the start of the month, a church was firebombed and its doors set ablaze. Those stirring hate jumped on plans to use the church as a food bank and a Muslim prayer room. Misinformation was spread on social media claiming it would be turned into a Mosque, stoking racist comments in community groups.
Yet most support for the populist right is borne of disillusionment, not hate. During the campaign, I spoke to many people who had voted Labour for most of their lives, but felt let down by both main parties. They felt Labour had taken them for granted and failed to ensure they benefited from growth before 2008. But they also felt betrayed by Boris Johnson’s failures on levelling up. They did not trust politicians to tackle antisocial behaviour, control our borders or improve their living standards.
Instead of registering a protest, some chose to bet on Labour and on the possibility of change. Often, that bet was cautious, tentative, even sceptical. These people are central to our chance to govern in a way that will beat the populist right — a theme that Labour Together will examine in its election review, laying the foundations for the party’s re-election strategy next time.
It is lazy to accept that any voter is beyond reach — or worse, not worth reaching. I spoke to people who had Reform UK billboards at the front of their houses, but, in the end, voted Labour. Many began by saying “I am not racist . . . ” expecting to be judged for asking about how their community is changing and how the government would restore control over UK borders. When they felt they were not being judged, conversation could begin.
The immense responsibility of delivering for people who have lost trust in politics will drive me as an MP. The British people have given us a simple mandate: fix things. If we fail to fix things in ways people can feel, they may never trust Labour again.
That is an awesome responsibility. We must never shift our gaze from the disillusioned, economically insecure voters who think politicians are all the same — and not allow ourselves to be distracted by internal party squabbles or priorities that are not shared by most voters. We must have the courage to shake up government on the public’s behalf, changing what doesn’t work.
In short, we must run an insurgent government. We politicians have been put on notice. If this government can move one metric over the next five years, it must be one that is not partisan: that the British people should trust their government a little bit more. If so, Labour may yet play its role in developing a global playbook for beating the populist right.
Credit: Source link
