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It is difficult to write an accurate account of the Labour Party Conference because you cannot attend everything which is going on. There are the main debates which tend to be set pieces, and then the fringes, where all sorts of debates and discussions go on. All you can do is give an impression of the atmosphere.
Public services should be controlled by the public
What is decided in these debates does not necessarily go into the manifesto, but it gives a good feeling of how the Party feels. The debates were not so acrimonious as in previous years. What is certainly clear is that the Party members are unanimous about certain issues. Public services should be controlled by, and accountable to, the public. There is plenty of room about how best to do it, how to ensure it does not cost too much to do it, and how customers should have choice if a service fails. Working people should have the same choices that rich people do. Local government should be given more power, and devolution strengthened.
Europe
On Europe the attitude is changing. Labour has now adopted a position of trying to improve the dysfunctional arrangements agreed in haste by Boris Johnson with ones that work and develop closer ties with Europe. Certainly, the attitude that Brexit is wholly writ adopted by the Tories needs to be replaced by a more pragmatic approach.
Energy and the environment
Keir Starmer is rightly cautious and knows he operates in an environment where there are unsympathetic media ready to pounce. Some members of his own side do not help either. But where the “middle ground” is in British politics has shifted leftwards. Even some Tories agree that railways should be publicly owned. Publicly owned power companies in France and publicly owned trains and buses in Germany work well and often take over some our failing operations. As confidence grows the Party will probably become bolder. The move to set up a Great British Energy public company was a shrewd move, taking some of the heat out of the energy nationalisation debate, for now. But there is universal agreement that the party needs to capture the environmental mantle from the Greens and Liberals.
Optimism
Certainly, the atmosphere in the conference was much friendlier and more optimistic than previous conferences I have been to. Gone is the acrimonious in-fighting. Many of the fringe meetings I had the opportunity to attend were less campaigns and more workshops about how policies could actually be made to work. Andy Burnham is a very charismatic and charming character and seemed to be everywhere that devolution or PR were discussed. Medieval saints dreamed of going to heaven though their good works. Now all you have to do is go to Manchester, preferably by bus, according to Andy Burnham. One good crack of his was that Manchester still aspired to be party capital of the UK. Unfortunately, that title is now held by 10 Downing Street.
The NHS
There is general agreement that the NHS needs more cash, and Rachel Reeves got considerable acclaim for announcing that the extra revenue from the restored 45% tax rate would go to improving the health and social care sector.
What intrigued me, however, as someone still involved with the NHS was the high level of debate on the fringe about new ways of running it and involving the voluntary sector. Wes Streeting, Shadow Secretary of State for Health, is extremely articulate about this and is keen on developing new technology. It has already saved his life.
Some things were not mentioned, when perhaps they should have been. How are we to deal with Scotland and the SNP rather than simply ignoring them and hoping they will go away? Economic stability has been secured with a sound policy and many thanks should go to Rachel Reeves for that.
Keir now speaks much better, and his address was good. He was at his best on the Radio 4 interview today (28 Sept)
A feeling of hope
As I said at the beginning there were probably some excellent meetings I simply could not get to, but the whole atmosphere of the conference was optimistic and friendly. The fact that many lobbying organisations and good causes had turned up shows a feeling amongst the public that Labour might win. I worry, however, that if Labour does win many will be disappointed as the economic situation will not be easy for a few years. Having said that most of the people there realised that once the party was over there was plenty of serious work to do, and victory was not assured. Nevertheless, most left with a feeling of hope. So comrades come rally!
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