This talk of hereditary principle is fundamentally un-Labour

By Lisa Nandy MP / @lisanandy

Regardless of who became leader on Saturday, it was clear there would be good candidates who lost and disappointed activists who had invested significant energy in their candidate’s campaign. So the somewhat muted mood after the announcement was to be expected. Yet after the leader’s speech there seemed to be a new buzz across conference, I think because Ed Miliband tapped into the strong desire across conference and the party at large to look outwards, to the destruction happening out there in communities across the country.

I shared a platform at the Tribune rally with Neil Kinnock who was delighted by the sense of energy and purpose, given we had just suffered electoral defeat. He told a packed room that the overwhelming sense of a party that is now looking outward, not inwards, to bring change to the country was very different from the response to past defeats. The media coverage, on the whole, didn’t seem to reflect or capture this. The conference I went to was energetic, angry that The Tories and Liberals were doing so much damage and hungry to win again.

I spoke to an inspirational group of young people who were, or were trying to become councillors for Labour, and was reminded strongly of the mood around the time I became active. Back in 1995 there was a sense of momentum about the party, and people – many of them young – were joining the party in droves. For the first time in a long time it felt like a movement, not a corporation.

Certain criticisms levelled at Ed Miliband by sections of the press were only to be expected, but I was surprised by the bizarre charge levelled against him that he shouldn’t have stood against his brother. The idea, that somehow you can inherit the right to become leader of the Labour Party because you happened to be born first is not just absurd, it is fundamentally un-Labour.

The basic values of our party state that what you do is more important than what you are born into, and that everyone should use their talents to the best of their ability to make the world a better place. “Wait your turn” is not an option for a party that needs to win back power, and quickly. There is too much talent in the party and in our new leader to insist that longevity counts for more than skill, energy and dedication. And we should urgently challenge the notion and culture that has developed during our 13 years in government that if you hang around for long enough you earn the right to top jobs, whether at a local, regional or national level.

As voting in the shadow cabinet elections begins, that is what I am looking for in candidates: people who have, and will continue to earn the right to serve – people like John Healey who has a track record of pushing through major improvements in government, from the EMA to house building, coupled with a drive and dynamism in opposition and a respect for ordinary party members.

It is important we give people like John the opportunity they deserve and will use so well. I’m not underestimating the importance of experience – but it isn’t everything