‘Hope again’: Inside Labour’s feelgood conference

Whisper it quietly, but Labour MPs think they’ve got their mojo back.

One year on from a challenging conference led by Sir Keir Starmer, party members used this year’s edition to kickstart an era of radical change and national renewal.

The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Hope Again’. Delegates, MPs and union members all descended on Liverpool hoping that, this time, they might be able to do just that. Not all of them will have got what they wanted, but many will have done so; from conference motions that backed wealth taxes, to the Chancellor’s vow that a “new age of industrialisation” is on the way.

The centrepiece of the event was the Prime Minister’s speech. Burnham had been the talk of conference and, in front of a packed hall on the banks of the Mersey, he gave an address that many are already saying will go down as one of the greatest in the party’s history.

The speech, delivered without the traditional speaker’s podium, contained radical policy initiatives, tied up into a vision for Britain that was notably different from that of his predecessors in Downing Street.

Triple lock changes, electoral reform, a new long-term relationship with Europe, a pathway towards greater control over utilities, most notably water – much of it was Labour Party politics 101, and it came wrapped up in the moving testimony of Andy Burnham’s late father Roy, framing his bold and ambitious vision for a National Care Service.

Through tears, and a growing crescendo of supportive applause from the floor, Mr Burnham said: “The United Kingdom my dad represented is the one I believe in. A union of nations that gave trade unions and the cooperative movement to the world.

“The National Health Service. A country that stood up to fascism. A country of solidarity, not separation. That’s the Britain my dad represented.”

READ MORE: Labour Party Conference 2026: Full LabourList events programme, revealed

MPs could not fail to be moved. Glasgow South MP Gordon McKee told LabourList that people around him were “really emotional”.

“It just felt like there was something… a clear sort of signal we are in this to fight for something unique and unusual. Labour governments in our country’s history have always changed Britain; they have always made Britain stronger and they have never shirked away from the difficult things.”

Indeed, if “difficult things” are not technically a policy topic, they were still high on the conference agenda. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s words on Israel and Palestine triggered one of the most rapturously received moments of conference. While Burnham’s speech was clearly the highlight of conference, Miliband’s would have no doubt been a solid second among delegates.

Miliband said: “I want to say to the millions of people in this country, and indeed elsewhere, who have been moved and outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people, we hear you. You were right.”

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner vowed to crack down on the “cowboys, crooks and con artists” in the property sector, while Defence Secretary Wes Streeting hit out at “critics on the left” who argue against investment in national defences. And amid calls from other parties to get rid of or replace the European Convention on Human Rights, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant pledged the party would “stand by it”.

Hitchin MP Alistair Strathearn told LabourList: “It feels like we are facing into some of the big challenges with slightly bolder solutions like the National Care Service – or the fact we feel a bit more comfortable in our own skin and in our values.

“I think Andy can talk very authentically about why he is a Labour Prime Minister, as well as just a Prime Minister, and that connects with a membership and gets people bought into the whole place.”

Leader of the House of Commons Sir Alan Campbell noted there had been a shift since Burnham walked up Downing Street and back into high office in July.

“I mean no disrespect to the previous administration, I had a great deal of time for Keir and what he achieved, but we are in a different place now,” he said.

Kim Leadbeater, MP for Spen Valley, echoed the optimistic sentiment of many and said things felt “really positive”.

CLP delegates and unions also played their part in proceedings, moving, seconding and carrying motions that ranged from insourcing and reindustrialisation, to the state of the country’s public services and bus network.

Middlesbrough and Thornaby East MP Andy McDonald said the motions were a sign that “everyone is wanting to pull in the same direction”.

Become a friend of LabourList and join our community. Our friends support our vital non-factional work and get access to exclusive content and events. 

Outside the hall

During a talk with Times Radio, Scotland Secretary Douglas Alexander suggested the PM is a “vibes” politician. But just feet away from the conference hall where delegates and politicians speak, colourful stalls set up by charities, TV stations and unions drew much of the hustle and bustle. The epicentre of the “vibes” conference.

Rare talents were revealed as politicians took on some of the challenges posed by these stalls. Michelle Scrogham, MP for Barrow and Furness, is a dab hand at using rope to guide a ball into a hole on a wall full of obstacles. Who knew? The not-so-easily described task set up by Guide Dogs UK.

Ken Skates can react faster to lights appearing on a wall than any other Labour politician. The Young Lives vs Cancer challenge will surely stand him in good stead as he battles with Plaid Cymru in the Senedd.

Ipswich MP Jack Abbott was the champion of the Premier League Foundation’s football challenge. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, perhaps more Ruddy than Rooney, finished respectably midtable. Her Everton-supporting boss would have been proud.

There was also a private section in the hall exclusively for members of the PLP. Following the leader’s speech on Monday, music could be heard bounding out from speakers inside. The tracks included a dance version of ‘Stacy’s Mom’ by Fountains of Wayne and Ella Langley’s ‘Choosing Texas’. No news on whether Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West MP Chi Onwurah was caught “two-stepping round the Toon”.

Subscribe here to our daily newsletter roundup of Labour news, analysis and comment– and follow us on TikTok, Bluesky, WhatsApp, X and Facebook. You can also write to our editor to share your thoughts on our stories and share your own. The best letters are published every Sunday.

Away from the exhibitions and main hall, dozens of fringe events were attended by members, delegates, the press, and MPs. Fringe events are all-encompassing words at a conference. They are where erudite debates on key policy areas are held, often sponsored by businesses or charities, but also parties where Dawn Butler, a mere 24 hours after her ‘Jamaica Night’, was seen DJing and getting the party started at LabourList’s karaoke night with Shaggy’s ‘It Wasn’t Me’.

And it is here that the conference finally ended, in a hall where tired delegates resolutely bopped to Sugababes, in Liverpool’s pubs and hotels and at Lime Street station, where bedraggled members of the press trudged towards their train home, suitcase in hand.

It may be hard to sum up this year’s conference in just a single word. But ahead of the Prime Minister publishing his 10-year plan, the Chancellor’s inaugural Budget and the details of brand new policy still yet to be decided, perhaps the final words should return to the motto of this year’s conference. Hope, again?

• • SHARE: If you have anything to share that we should be looking into or publishing about this story – or any other topic involving Labour– contact us (strictly anonymously if you wish) at [email protected].
  • SUBSCRIBE: Sign up to LabourList’s morning email here for the best briefing on everything Labour, every weekday morning.
  • BECOME A FRIEND: If you enjoyed this, why not consider becoming a Friend of LabourList? Help sustain our journalism, and of course Friends do get benefits…
  • PARTNER: If you or your organisation might be interested in partnering with us on sponsored events or projects, email [email protected].
  • ADVERTISE: If your organisation would like to advertise or run sponsored pieces on LabourList‘s daily newsletter or website, contact our exclusive ad partners Total Politics at [email protected].