We need bold ideas, courage and hope, but timidity and backpedaling are the hallmarks of this Labour leadership
We live in an age of perpetual conflict. The global crash, the pandemic and now war and the cost of living crisis have shown us our economic and political systems are not fit for such chaotic times. The tide is now going out on one era, and the Labour party seems to have been left behind. It appears perpetually out of step, most recently when it sacked MP Sam Tarry, the now former Labour transport spokesperson who dared to stand on a picket line with striking workers, and lost his job shortly afterwards.
Labour in its post-Corbyn period is desperately searching for a playbook that will win it the next election, or at least keep it electorally afloat. But the only one to hand is apparently New Labour’s – and they offer a desiccated, joyless, and stripped bare version of that more interesting but long-gone moment.
Neal Lawson is director of the cross-party campaign organisation Compass
