Throughout the race to be Labour’s Deputy Leader, LabourList will be publishing a range of pieces from supporters of both candidates, as well as offering a platform to both Bridget Phillipson and Lucy Powell to share their pitch to Labour members.
“I can do that job of bridging the movement, our broad movement, which we’ve not represented all that well recently.” This quote is the heart of Lucy Powell’s pitch to be Deputy Leader. It is a representation of the way she intends to be the person willing and able to voice the frustrations of the membership to the leadership.
It isn’t a fair comparison. The reasons behind it were circumstantial, not political choices. But it strikes me that the two different venues in which I interviewed the two candidates for Labour’s Deputy Leadership reflect in many ways the two pitches the women are offering the country.
Last week’s interview with Bridget Phillipson was held a stone’s throw from the Ministry of Education in the heart of Westminster – the centre of government. That suits her pitch as the woman on the inside, delivering in government and sat around the top table.
Bring politics back
When it came to meeting Lucy Powell, it was in a room in the ACC in Liverpool (in her home region of the North West) at party conference, with Labour delegates walking past on their way to thousands of fringe meetings on hundreds of topics. And her focus – highlighting the fact that she’s no longer in cabinet as a plus point (though she’s keen to point out that as Deputy she would be in the political cabinet. However, this doesn’t have the same rules around public agreement) – was that she would have the freedom to work full time to ‘bring some of the politics back to the table.”
Without being held to collective cabinet responsibility, she would be able to challenge the government on behalf of the members publicly. “I am prepared to deliver the difficult messages. I would have a strong mandate from the members. It’s a powerful role to be able to say when we need to change course, to say how we can improve and get better, and to help the rest of the cabinet be more political and be clearer in what they’re saying about why we’re doing what we’re doing and who we’re doing it for.”
But her focus is also on the party machinery. She would “develop the capacity and the infrastructure in the party to do some of those functions that I think sometimes we let wither on the vine in government.” This is reflected in her promise to hold regular ‘Lucy Listens’ sessions with members to hear their reflections on what it’s like on the doorsteps and what they need from the Party to improve their chances.
A governmental way of thinking
When asked what Labour had got wrong in government, she said that the transition to government had been hard. And that people had got into a “ governmental way of doing things, and that’s not really the mood, and that’s not the nature of politics. These days, politics is moving very, very fast and government is quite slow and siloed.”
Powell’s life has also moved pretty fast of late. As she points out, this isn’t a job she’s been campaigning for behind the scenes for ages. “What happened to Angela is a great loss to our movement. It’s really sad for her and for us. And we all thought she would be in that job for a long time.” So she hasn’t had a lot of time to gear up.
Puzzle solver
She, rightly, bristles when I raise the perception that she is seen as a stalking horse for Andy Burnham. This may be less of an issue post-conference, but she’s keen to assert her independence – as Phillipson was when asked about being the supposed ‘leadership’ candidate – “I always think it is pretty sexist. We’re two strong women standing in an open contest. I am completely motivated by my own agenda here.”
When asked how she relaxes, she talks about her love of sport (she’s a Manchester City season ticket holder) but also crosswords – though the campaign has meant she’s lost her ‘Wordle’ streak (I lost mine at conference, so I can sympathise). She also describes herself as laughing at “gallows humour, sort of bad, you know, close to the bone.”
With Reform high in the polls, some gallows humour may well be required – as will be the ability to find the right word to put in the right place. Both Powell and Phillipson describe themselves as wanting to be “campaigning deputy leaders.” The difference might come to the balance in the targets of that campaigning between championing the government from the inside and championing the members from the outside. With Powell as the more outsider voice, her pitch to members is clear: “I’ll represent our values. I will do that responsibly. I’ll do that carefully, but I won’t be afraid to say so when I think we need to change course or get things right.”
The role of deputy leader will combine a complex need to campaign with the government to the public and with the members to the leadership. If Powell wins, finding this balance will be where she will need that humour, the ability to solve hard problems and the determination and the strength to do a difficult job well that she is putting at the heart of her pitch.
Emma Burnell, Editor of LabourList said “I am grateful to PLMR for their invaluable support and flexibility in making this interview happen. Hearing from the candidates for Deputy Leader, this time at the heart of Labour Party Conference, is a great service to members.
“At LabourList we are dedicated to bringing Labour news to members of the Party and everyone who cares about how the party of Government works. This Deputy Leadership race is vital to the future of the Party, and we continue to be the best source of news on the ongoing election.”
Kevin Craig, CEO and founder of PLMR, said “I’m delighted we are continuing our partnership with LabourList. Hearing directly from the candidates about their vision for the country, and the challenges Labour faces, is vital to how many will vote in this election. It has been wonderful to have both Lucy and Bridget share their thoughts.
“The Deputy Leader of the Labour Party holds an incredibly important role, and the Party’s future success matters deeply to me. Having both candidates work with PLMR to share their views and pitches to our party is a great way to engage as many members as possible in this process.
“At PLMR, we work closely with political parties because what happens inside them sets the tone for policy and government. Businesses cannot afford to ignore the impact the winner of this vote will have on policy.”
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