Whilst Labour Conference is now over, the heat has remained on our new government and their gifts.
See which Labour MP managed to survive the furor, and which Cabinet members are going to be glad it's Friday...we've got it all in this week's Who's Top, Who's Not.
Top: Samantha Niblett MP
Labour conference is the highlight of the political calendar for Labour MPs, and the new intake will have been buzzing to celebrate with friends and meet new organisations at conference.
There were literally hundreds of events at conference this year, and with relatively little known about new MPs, the hot seats on panels were mostly going to Ministers and industry experts. Unless, of course, you’re an expert in all things tech and investment - only two of the most talked about topics at this year’s Labour Conference.
Samantha Niblett is that expert, and she was everywhere. If she wasn’t at the startup tech hub, she was on panels for some of the hottest tech events at Labour Conference – speaking on AI, skills and equality.
It’s no surprise considering Niblett founded Labour Women in Tech, a powerful campaigning group that has been mobilising Labour MPs to advocate for getting more women into tech roles. If Labour Conference is anything to go by, the new MP for South Derbyshire is one to watch.
Mid: Rachel Reeves MP
As a chancellor during a cost-of-living crisis, no news is good news – and Rachel will be relieved to know that she got through the annual Labour conference unscathed.
With the budget less than a month away, and in a stuffy conference hall with thousands of CEOs eager to know about the government’s plans for economic growth, Reeves did remarkably well to keep the headlines at bay. Businesses are reasonably satisfied that more details will inevitably come at the Budget.
Voters, too, will have been pleased that the party has changed tack from gloom to boom, with Reeves assuring the crowd that her “optimism for Britain burns brighter than ever, my ambition knows no limit” during her speech.
But to put turn that optimism into reality she will need to stimulate economic growth. To do that she may need to borrow more and that is what the Treasury is now briefing. Whilst it may make economic sense to tweak fiscal rules to borrow for capital spending on infrastructure projects, it risks undermining all the political pain of the winter fuel cuts whilst providing the new Tory leader with the opportunity to attack Labour as the party that always borrows more once in government.
Bottom: Keir Starmer MP
At a pace of unravelling that reminds WTWN of when the Conservatives were in one of their many crises of the last few years: Starmer, to put it bluntly, is not having a great week.
In response to the constant news coverage of ministerial donations and gifts over the last few days, supporters of Starmer have accused journos of going for cheap and easy clickbait, or noting that the Conservatives were also happy to take gifts and donations whilst in power.
That may all be true, but what is also true is that the public do not have much good will left for politicians – and Starmer won on the premise of bringing about change. His team were strategic enough to understand that it would be election-winning to position Starmer as being devoted to public service, as someone who followed the rule of law and would work tirelessly to correct “Tory scandal and sleaze”.
Where this strategy has suffered since being in power is that it’s not just about what the official rules are; it’s also about perceptions. Voters are struggling to relate to a party leader who received thousands of pounds worth of gifts – and every new instance of this feels like another betrayal to a volatile electorate that are tired of politicians of all stripes.
This instance of questionable political nous is not, on its own, fatal for the party. But they need to learn from this – otherwise Labour risks implosion far sooner than the next general election.