It may not have been the best week for the country, but it has been a good one for Keir Starmer and his Labour party. Party conference, we are told, was by all accounts a triumphant affair, where even the hecklers of yesteryear were gone. Labour is leading in the polls, and if Starmer retains this advantage over the next two years, he is on his way to a coronation, vindicated in playing the long game.
But there is another side to this story of a party hitting its stride. You may have heard a lot about Islamophobia in the Tory party. But not so much, I would wager, about Islamophobia in the Labour party or racism toward Black MPs and staff. Or misogyny. Which is odd, because it has been reported by members of the party, MPs and an actual inquiry in the shape of July’s Forde report. That reality is in sharp contrast to the image of the party that leadership projects – one of zero tolerance of prejudice and fast, decisive action to enforce discipline, most recently suspending the whip from the MP Rupa Huq for comments about Kwasi Kwarteng.
