A year is an eternity in politics. At their 2021 congress, organized a year ago in Brighton, Labor looked gray. Their leader Keir Starmer struggled to exist in the face of his exuberant conservative opponent, Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Today, gathered in congress in Liverpool, the positions have been reversed. Never have Labor seemed so optimistic about their chance to come to power.
“This country needs new leaders,” launched Keir Starmer during his closing speech. « Ils (conservatives) ripped up the foundations of the country, smashed the windows and now they’re blowing the doors down for good measure. And they did all of this not for you, not for workers, but for tax cuts for the richest 1% of society. » Before promising the members and elected members of his party: “We can be a government for the well-being of all, not just for the wealthy. »
“Determination and Hope”
The atmosphere in the aisles of the Liverpool conference center was clearly in this direction. “At this congress, I feel two things: determination and hope”, former Labor Party leader Ed Miliband (2010-2015) had commented the day before, in a white-hot auditorium. « Ils (conservatives) must be beaten and they are beatable. »
The forced resignation of Boris Johnson by his people in early July was received as a blessing by Labour. “It was not always easy to position ourselves against Johnson,” admits MP Emma Hardy. For good reason, despite his image as a radical Brexiter, the former Prime Minister had shown himself to be very moderate in terms of economic policy. It has invested in public services and made the development of former industrial regions its national strategic priority, through its Leveling Up programme.
Lower taxes and support for the wealthy
When her budget was announced last Friday, her successor Liz Truss proved that a completely different Conservative Party is now in power. Goodbye Leveling Up, hello tax cuts and support for the wealthy. The disappearance of the marginal tax rate of 45% above €167,000 of income and the end of the cap on bankers’ bonuses caught the eye.
“We expected tax cuts, but in such a cynical and ideological way, without caring what the population thinks, really not at all”, assures Emma Hardy, still stunned by the audacity of the Prime Minister. “The British are going to suffer and they won’t be mistaken: they know that in the midst of a social crisis, Liz Truss granted a tax reduction of 55,000 pounds (62,000 €) to people who receive 1 million pounds, more than the average household income. There is now a real ideological dividing line between the Conservatives and us. »
A financial tornado
The situation is also playing in favor of Labour. Last Friday’s budget measures threw the UK into the center of a financial tornado. The pound lost 5% against the US dollar and 2% against the euro, while government bond rates jumped, making government borrowing much more expensive.
The reaction of the British was immediate: a YouGov poll carried out last weekend and published this Tuesday, September 27 gives Labour, 17 points (45% – 28%) ahead, unheard of since 2001. Even if the next general elections are only due in 2024, Keir Starmer’s path to 10 Downing Street is already open.