Labour conference: How does the party choose which city hosts?

Although conference season is now very much in the rearview mirror as 2024 comes to a close, party officials, delegates and others alike are already preparing for a return to Liverpool next autumn.

2025 will mark the fourth year in a row that Labour has held its conference in Merseyside, bringing with it a huge boost for the local economy.

However, Labour’s liking of Liverpool is relatively new. Over the last 50 years, it is the southern seaside city of Brighton that has hosted conference the most – welcoming delegates and visitors 20 times, with some of the party’s most notable conference moments taking place in the city.

Brighton is closely followed by Blackpool, who have hosted 14 times – but have not welcomed Labour to the city since 2002.

So what actually goes into deciding which city should host the party each year? And will Labour’s love affair with Liverpool continue for some time to come?

Alice Perry, a former chair of the party’s national executive committee, said the decision, made by the NEC, Conference Arrangements Committee and the general secretary, boils down to four key factors – security, accessibility and transport links.

She said that the number of venues that tick all the boxes the party look for in a potential host is extremely limited, with the event having now outgrown many cities.

“It highlights that there aren’t that many venues in the UK that could accommodate it, and that might be something it would be good to invest in as infrastructure.”

Perry said that people had been “very positive” about Liverpool since it began hosting in 2018 and noted how the city has the capacity to support the number of people attending the event.

Liverpool’s four-year long run is the longest over the last half a century, something which Perry said is the result of a multi-year contract agreed with the venue, which she claimed allowed the party to negotiate a better price.

‘Brighton is ready for conference to come back home’

Despite the positive reception for Liverpool, many Labour MPs, mayors and council leaders are keen to see conference return to their part of the country.

Among those is Brighton and Hove City Council leader Bella Sankey, who said that it’s time for conference to “come back home”.

She said: “Brighton has a special place in the history of the Labour Party. From Nye Bevan’s conference speech in 1957 to Gordon Brown’s famous one in 2009 and even Keir Starmer’s first as leader in 2021, our city and our party have been linked for decades.

“Since taking majority control of the city last year, we’ve been sorting out the mess left by the Greens and getting our city ready to host Labour Party conferences again.

“Our Brighton Centre is highly accessible, we have fantastic venues and some of the best restaurants in the country.

“We’re also officially the sunniest city in England – what’s not to love? Brighton is ready for Labour conference to come back home.”

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While Perry expressed her love for Brighton as a host, she said that previous occasions the city has hosted have come with some drawbacks.

“I really like Brighton as a venue. I like being by the seaside, it’s often a nice time of year – but unfortunately Brighton just doesn’t have the accessibility. The last time conference was there, that was an issue.”

She also said that Brighton’s place along the south coast made it difficult for some delegates and visitors to get to conference from further afield.

“It’s good to have somewhere in the middle of the country with transport links.”

‘Blackpool boost from conference would be game changing’

Chris Webb, MP for Blackpool South, told LabourList he has lobbied every leader since Ed Miliband to bring conference back to the city and said the boost it would bring to the local economy would be “game changing”.

He said: “We’ve built a new conference centre attached to the winter gardens and we’ve just got planning permission for a new hotel on the site that will have a connecting walkway.

“In the past, Labour conference services have claimed Blackpool doesn’t have the quality hotels they need – now that isn’t the case. The new Holiday Inn is the best in the UK and Ireland and the Boulevard just won three times at the World Luxury Hotel Awards.”

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‘If Labour is looking for Brummie charm, West Midlands has got to be top of the list’

Birmingham has hosted the Conservative Party conference several times over the last few years but has yet to be the venue for Labour’s national conference. Perry credits this to Labour’s greater number of delegates and attendees that visit conference compared to the Tories.

Despite this, Richard Parker said he would love to see the city host conference and said: “It would be a fantastic opportunity to showcase our vibrant city and the wider West Midlands region to the rest of the country.

“Birmingham is a dynamic and diverse city with a reputation for innovation and creativity. We’re at the heart of the country, with excellent transport links and a wealth of world-class venues ready to deliver an incredible conference experience.

“We’ve got a strong track record of hosting major party conferences, international events and proving what a brilliant destination we are.

“That said, I know there’ll be plenty of competition from other cities and mayors who feel just as proud of their own patches – but if Labour is looking for a warm welcome, a bit of Brummie charm, and some of the best food you can find then the West Midlands has got to be top of the list.”

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Time for conference to head north of the border?

While some cities have gone several years or decades since hosting, Scotland is enduring a lengthy 88-year wait for the party’s national conference to travel north of the border once again, having last welcomed the party to Edinburgh in 1936 for the first conference under Clement Attlee’s leadership.

Glasgow South West MP Zubir Ahmed told LabourList he would like to see conference return to his city, having last welcomed the party back in January 1914 with Ramsay MacDonald.

“The Labour Party has strong historical and contemporary ties with the city of Glasgow and the infrastructure lends itself to be the future host of the Labour Party conference.

“This year, Labour regained the city of Glasgow, winning every parliamentary seat in the general election, with six MPs now representing Glaswegians in Westminster.

“The people of Glasgow sent a very clear message from the polling stations this summer – rejecting the SNP’s politics of incompetence and failure to use the powers that the Scottish government has to grow Scotland’s economy and deliver for Scots.

“Whilst we have contemporary success to talk about, the Labour Party has deep historical ties with the city of Glasgow, dating back to its beginnings in the early 20th century. Glasgow is one of the cities we speak of when we note the renaissance of northern and industrial cities throughout the New Labour era. They renovated, restocked and rebuilt schools, hospitals and clinics, arts and sports venues, parks and museums. Glasgow stands as a monument to the Labour era.

“Not only does the historical cultural links make Glasgow a perfect fit to host the Labour Party conference, but the city is also well-equipped to host events on this scale, offering a variety of venues, transportation and accommodation options.”

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Gordon McKee from the neighbouring constituency of Glasgow South shares Ahmed’s enthusiasm for a national conference in Scotland.

“Glasgow would be a brilliant place to hold Labour Party conference. We have everything you could want – a great conference centre, pubs and of course a strong Labour tradition running through the city.

“Glasgow played host to global climate talks with COP26 in recent years and our city would be more than ready for conference.”

What is the future for Labour Party conference?

For all the talk of possible alternatives, what does the future hold for Labour Party conference?

“I think it is likely it will stay in Liverpool for the foreseeable future,” Perry said.

“However, it is always possible that other venues will be redeveloped or will be built, so there might be different opportunities.”

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