Labour Party members will descend on Liverpool this weekend for their annual conference, Keir Starmer’s second as Prime Minister. He is not short of problems to navigate as he seeks to address his party and the country, but an audience of Labour members and MPs can be a tough crowd to please. Here’s what to look out for during the conference.
Deputy Leadership Campaign
Following Angela Rayner’s resignation, the battle for the deputy leadership of the party is underway. Starmer took the opportunity to separate the roles of deputy pm and deputy party leader, giving the DPM job to David Lammy rather than leave that decision to the members. Lucy Powell and Bridget Phillipson, the only candidates to secure the 80 nominations required from their Parliamentary Labour Party colleagues, have both now passed the threshold to stay on the ballot. So far, both candidates have taken care to not let race get messy for the party. However, you can expect to see a lot of them both at conference as they try to win over members in the run up to the hustings on Wednesday, the final day of the conference. The ballot for members opens on October 8 with the result announced on October 25.
Tackling the Roots of Populism
Delegates can also expect the theme of growing illiberalism and the rise of the far-right to be a connecting thread throughout the conference debates, receptions, and fringe events. Of particular interest to business will be a focus on reviving the British high street and addressing the economic headwinds facing the country as a way of countering the roots of the discontent blamed for fuelling the spread of populism. A key conference debate on this theme will focus on supporting the workforce in developing skills for the future, particularly for young people defined as the so-called ‘NEETs’: those not in education, employment, or training.
Movement on the Two Child Benefit Cap?
Both deputy leadership candidates are pushing for change to the two-child welfare benefit cap and anticipation of movement on this from Starmer is high. Senior Labour voices are lobbying hard within No 10 for a relaxing of the policy as a minimum, with conference delegates expected to secure a motion on this issue, which has the potential to be debated and voted on. It could be embarrassing for the PM and his inner circle if they look like they are being dragged in a direction they don’t want to go, and they will be considering ways of getting ahead of this. Watch this space.
International vs Domestic for Starmer
Conference debates on international affairs will throw a spotlight on the way Starmer and his team have navigated their way through a string of difficult diplomatic challenges. The list of international problems facing the Prime Minister is long, including the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. Yet these challenges have also afforded him an opportunity to be a statesman on the world stage. The diplomatic wins secured during Donald Trump’s state visit now seem a distant memory as the UK and Europe came in for a battering from the US President at the UN General Assembly which immediately followed. Trump took aim once again at London’s Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan, claiming the capital “wants to go to Sharia Law” and leaving labour MPs outraged. So, whilst international issues are occupying a great deal of the PM’s time and effort, the political wins domestically are few and far between and will come under scrutiny at the conference.
Reshuffle Winners and Losers
Such a comprehensive reshuffle so close to a conference was far from ideal for those planning the event. Expect to see Rayner still all over the conference guide and other party literature, as well as last minute changes to fringe events where ministers previously due to appear have been moved or sacked. The Liverpool conference is close to the constituencies of North West MPs like Lucy Powell, Jim McMahon and Jeff Smith who lost out in the reshuffle. Yet Labour will be keen to unleash its big hitters and fresh faces to move the conversation on from the bumpy start to the government’s second phase, focusing on delivery after laying the foundations. Expect the likes of Kate Dearden, a new minister at the Department for Work and Pensions, to be given the chance to shine and sell the flagship Employment Rights Bill to eager members, whilst big hitters like newly-appointed Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting are expected to both reflect on how much the government has achieved, and set out the plan for what comes next in their speeches. The Leader’s speech will come on Tuesday afternoon with Labour now having so many MPs that seats for them in the hall have had to be allocated by ballot. All eyes will be on the Prime Minister in the hope he can set out his vision for a brighter future to make the bumpy journey in government so far feel worth it.
Holly Lynch is a Senior Counsel at Arden Strategies. She was previously Labour MP for Halifax and the party’s Deputy Chief Whip
