HOW LABOUR WORKS A guide to the internal workings of the Labour Party for businesses 2 HOW LABOUR WORKS How Labour Works CONTENTS Introductions by Alastair Campbell and George Pascoe-Watson ............................. 3-5 Executive Summary .......................................................................................................................................................... 6 An introduction to the Labour Party .............................................................................................................. 7 Chapter 1: How is policy made in the Labour Party? ................................................................... 8 by Richard Brooks, Ollie Moffat and Maddie Reay Chapter 2: Leader of the Opposition ............................................................................................................. 11 by Daisy Robertson and Alastair Castle Chapter 3: The Shadow Cabinet ........................................................................................................................ 13 by Nicole Perretta and Jack Reason Chapter 4: Parliamentary Labour Party & their Constituency Labour Parties ...... 15 by Connor Whittam and Conor O’Brien Chapter 5: National Executive Committee ............................................................................................ 17 by Conor O’Brien and Ben Hopkinson Chapter 6: Devolved Nations & metro mayors ................................................................................. 19 by Vashti Miller and Ed Moran Chapter 7: Trade Unions ............................................................................................................................................. 21 by Laura Jack Chapter 8: Affiliated Socialist Societies & Labour Groups .................................................. 24 by Leena El Refaey and Alex Prior-Wandesforde Reading list ............................................................................................................................................................................. 26 A timeline of the Labour Party .......................................................................................................................... 27 3 HOW LABOUR WORKS Recently, I was at an event with a group of senior business leaders. Always seeking to stir the pot, I asked them all who they thought would be prime minister in two years’ time. Around 60 percent said Sir Keir Starmer. A week later I had an even bigger focus group, five hundred business leaders, lawyers and accountants. This time it was closer to 80 percent. A lot can happen between now and a general election, but there is a growing sense of decay and decline about the Tories and therefore a growing sense that that there will be a Labour government before too long. It won’t surprise you to know I would welcome that. But to businesses too, whatever your politics, I say embrace it. Because between now and then there is a genuine opportunity to shape the policies and direction of the Labour Party. Keir Starmer has methodically and effectively deployed a three-stage strategy to get the Party in this position; decontaminate the Labour brand post-Corbyn, show the Tories to be unfit for office, and now set out a credible alternative. Part of this strategy is making clear that he backs business and understands the major role it has to play in solving some of this country’s gravest challenges. Companies large and small can and should be part of that debate. It is over a decade since Labour was last in power. How Labour Works sets out to explain the Party, how it operates, how decisions are made, above all how businesses and others who are not versed in the Party’s ways can seem to build positive and constructive relationships if-and-when it enters power. Strong Labour credentials are part of Portland’s DNA. We are continuing to help clients engage with the current government while also preparing for the likelihood of a Labour one. And we have great teams of people who stand ready to advise you on the potential next government. Alastair Campbell Portland Advisor and former director of communications and strategy for Tony Blair Introductions by Alastair Campbell and George Pascoe-Watson 4 HOW LABOUR WORKS It’s an important factor as we at Portland establish what the Labour leader still needs to accomplish to “seal the deal” with British voters. Sir Keir and his frontbench team have worked hard to court the business world. This is critical to the credibility that Labour needs for re-election. For years Labour and the corporate world have been distant observers. During the Corbyn years, it was outright hostile. On both sides. But rightly, Sir Keir and his top team are genuinely engaging with business leaders in the hope of better understanding their approach to policy and regulation. There are so many sectors and firms – both British and global – for Labour to meet that Labour’s frontbench has taken a “divide and conquer” approach. The Labour leader understands he has a grave responsibility to engage, listen and plan for the stewardship of the UK economy. He has also professionalised his organisation admirably. Senior Labour people remark constantly at the impressive people around the Leader and his office. And the same runs true through the offices of the Shadow Cabinet. When talented people start joining the offices of Labour frontbenchers, there’s a sign to the market of the way the wind is blowing. But being taken seriously by the business community and professionalising the organisation is not enough to win the hearts and minds of the electorate. The Opposition Leader hasn’t experienced ministerial office. Almost no one in his close team has. Ed Miliband in the Shadow Cabinet has been equipped with a Secretary of State’s ministerial red box, while Yvette Cooper was Work and Pensions Secretary and Pat McFadden was Business Minister. Jonathan Ashworth, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, was a Downing Street adviser in the Gordon Brown term of office. This is where the mass media matters. Many commentators say the national newspapers and even the traditional broadcasters have had their day. That their dwindling circulations and fragmented audiences no longer carry the same weight as before. The days of the 1992 election, when it was “The Sun Wot Won It”, are long gone, they reckon. And yet all serious political figures relentlessly try to win over these same print and broadcast titles. Hours and hours of energy is poured into media strategies, relationship building and rebuttal to avoid harmful commentary. The power of the Press still exists. It’s not the headline on polling day that counts. It’s the constant characterisation of political figures day in, day out, that makes or breaks. It’s also worth noting that much of the UK newspaper industry has an allergy to a Starmer premiership because they fear he might introduce anti freedom-of-the-Press measures. On March 17 1997, Conservative Prime Minister John Major called a general election that would take place six weeks later on May 1. I was The Sun’s deputy political editor and I still remember the instruction that came down to me from on high - The Sun Backs Blair. It’s widely acknowledged that although Labour’s Tony Blair was clearly going to win the election, it was The Sun’s support that helped turn his victory into a landslide. A landslide that meant Labour would enjoy 13 years in power under two formidable prime ministers. Wind the clock forwards 26 years, and how is Sir Keir Starmer’s standing with the same UK media? Is it even still the same media? And does the media even still matter? George Pascoe-Watson Portland UK Chairman and former political editor of The Sun 5 HOW LABOUR WORKS And all this explains why the LOTO – Leader of the Opposition – is working hard behind the scenes to win the endorsement of at least one major title. The FT? The Times? Even The Sun. The prize matters. I would say that, wouldn’t I? I was also that paper’s political editor in 2009 when we decided to endorse David Cameron’s Conservative Party, with the headline “Labour’s Lost It”. Eight months later Mr Cameron became Prime Minister. 6 HOW LABOUR WORKS Executive Summary It’s 21 years since Portland was formed out of the office of Tony Blair, the most electorally successful Labour Party leader in history. Our consultants’ unrivalled knowledge of how Labour worked then helped countless businesses and organisations navigate British politics in the noughties. But after nearly 13 years in Opposition, the opinion polls are clear. The prospect of a return to government for the Labour Party has never been so strong. Influencing the Labour Party is significantly more complex than working with the Conservative Party to shape the operating environment for any business or organisation. To its supporters and members, Labour’s strength is its dynamic democracy. But that same strength is also its weakness. Decision-makers are under pressure from a much broader range of groups, including members, affiliates, factions and funders, than most other mainstream political parties. Understanding how these groups are inter-connected, how much power they wield, and what their objectives are, is crucial to effective engagement with Labour. Businesses don’t need to engage with each and every one of these influencing groups and bodies. But navigating the Labour movement requires insight, knowledge and judgment to know how and when to engage. Who’s who in the Leader’s office? What are the Leader’s priorities? How influential are the trades unions? And which are the most influential? What’s the make-up of the National Executive Committee and why does it matter? Who holds sway in the myriad interest and pressure groups which come together to form the Party? What, today, does the membership look like and how might it change if the nation puts Labour back into power? Portland’s outstanding team of consultants has the answers to these and many more questions which will inevitably surface in the coming months. Next in the series, Portland will lift the lid on the individuals who matter, including key members of the Shadow Cabinet and their inner sanctum, and how the policies of key departments will be shaped by those individuals and personalities. George Pascoe-Watson was the Political Editor of The Sun during the reign of Prime Minister Gordon Brown. He is now Portland’s UK Chairman. Few consultants have had such intimate knowledge of the journey the Labour Party has been on – winning power, governing, and rebuilding through Opposition. How Labour Works provides an in-depth understanding of the very real political tensions inside Labour today, authored by current Labour campaigners from within our ranks. This document is written and edited by experts across Portland with unrivalled knowledge of today’s Labour Party. Alastair Campbell remains the most prominent architect of the New Labour project. He is now Portland’s Advisor. As he sets out, business shouldn’t miss the boat on its chance to shape policy direction of a future government. How Labour Works is Portland’s view into what will shape Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party as it prepares to win its first UK general election since 2005. More importantly, it’s a bible for organisations seeking to influence how Labour might govern. 7 HOW LABOUR WORKS For many members and campaigners, Labour is more than just a political party to support at election time. It is a lifelong commitment, their dysfunctional family, a political ideology comparable to a religion. All political parties are broad churches, but the Labour Party has suffered from an inherent ideological divide that has plagued it from the very beginning. The Party is and has always been split into two main - and often warring - factions: THE RADICAL / LEFTIST GROUP – who believe the goal of the Labour Party is to create a mass movement across society in coalition with other campaigning groups, through a radical and transformative policy programme THE MODERATE / REFORMING GROUP – who believe the goal of the Labour Party is to win public elections and that the most effective way to do this is by moving the Party to the ‘centre ground’ of British politics This divide colours all interactions within the Party, in particular when votes are being counted. In the Conservative Party, members are far less empowered in party structures. Other smaller parties, such as the Liberal Democrats, rarely have the numbers or the ideological differences to make their party democracy as volatile. So, a familiar tale is told throughout Labour’s history. One faction holds power over the majority of the Party’s political and democratic structures through winning elections. The other cries foul that their practices are being subverted. An appeal is made to the membership about bringing the Party ‘back to its roots’ – either as an election winning machine or a mass movement. A new leader or National Executive Committee is elected. A rejuvenated policy platform is agreed. Rinse. Repeat. This tension has played out throughout Labour’s history – from Ramsay MacDonald’s “betrayal” to Neil Kinnock’s speech condemning Militants at party conference. More recently, we’ve seen the height of Corbynmania in 2017 and Starmer’s description of that manifesto as a “foundational document” when running to be Labour leader. Now, he is rapidly moving the Party to the political centre on issues such as law & order and opening up to business engagement. This has led to calls of duplicity by Labour’s left, who feel Starmer is not sticking by his radical leadership campaign pledges. Understanding Labour means understanding the coalition of Labour’s parliamentary party, activists, wider membership and affiliated groups. Of the moderates and the leftists. Old or New Labour, the soft left and old right and the Corbynites. Debates about Labour’s campaigning platform, policy direction and personnel are happening right now. Which is why it’s critically important for businesses to understand the Party, and how to engage and influence it before Sir Keir Starmer potentially reaches Downing Street. The Labour leader has quietly bent the Party machine to his will and transformed it in just three short years. His Party is almost unrecognisable from the low point of December 2019. But further challenges are undoubtedly to come. What they might be, and how the Labour Party might respond, is quickly becoming one of the most important topics in British politics. An introduction to the Labour Party 8 HOW LABOUR WORKS CHAPTER 1: How is policy made in the Labour Party? By Richard Brooks, Ollie Moffat and Maddie Reay The Labour Party is a uniquely complex and challenging organisation. It has hundreds of thousands of members based all across the United Kingdom. It is a coalition of a parliamentary party, members, trade unions and affiliate groups – often with contradictory and competing aims. This tension is meant to be managed through multiple democratic processes, often run by volunteers (elected by the same people they preside over). But businesses should not be disheartened; you do not need to engage with every democratic exercise the Labour Party has to offer. Instead, understanding these many forums and organising points will lead to greater knowledge of the internal pressures and influences that your main points of contact – councillors, MPs, advisors, and Shadow Ministers – will be under. Why businesses need to understand the Labour Party It starts at a hyper-local level with Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs), which are the local party organisations based on parliamentary constituencies. Further information on CLPs can be found in Chapter 4, the Parliamentary Party and their Constituency Labour Parties. Labour’s annual conference is where – outside of choosing their parliamentary candidate – CLPs are meant to play their most important role. Within the Labour Party’s articles, “the work of the Party shall be under the direction and control of Party conference”. Simply put, it is meant to be the highest decision-making authority. In reality, much policy influencing happens away from the conference floor: at the highly structure media and events agenda of the Leader, Shadow Cabinet and their teams, and in dealmaking in the back rooms, corridors, receptions, delegate, meetings and bars. But that is not to say that voting delegates can’t have a significant impact. Over the summer, CLPs – often organised at a national or regional level by campaigning groups – decide on motions to send to national conference. You can read more about this in Chapter 4 . At the beginning of conference, there is then a priorities ballot among delegates – many sent by CLPs, as well as trade unions – and compositing meetings to merge similar motions together. The proposers of the most successful policies in the priorities ballot are essentially locked in a room to agree the final wording of a combined motion, and who gets to present it on conference floor. All of this tends to happen right at the beginning of conference. In 2022, the top six subjects selected by CLPs and the top six subjects selected by the affiliated organisations were timetabled for debate. What is chosen, and in what order, will often give a very good indication as to who ‘has’ the conference floor, and where the power lies. The most controversial motions tend to either be on big political issues such as Brexit, or internal constitutional changes – where one political faction will often attempt to solidify their power base through rule changes. Creating policy in the Labour Party – from CLP to conference floor It’s a highly political process where different groups, factions and trade unions will wheel-and-deal to ensure their issues are heard and voted on at conference. 9 HOW LABOUR WORKS At party conference, one of the standing agenda items will be reports from the National Policy Forum (NPF) and the different policy commissions. Currently, there are six long-term reviews and consultations into the Labour Party’s policy platforms on: The National Policy Forum’s long game A green and digital future Public services that work from the start Better jobs and better work A future where families come first Safe and secure communities Britain in the world These are debated and then voted on throughout the conference. But the NPF is active throughout the year, meeting regularly. With over 150 members, including MPs, councillors, trade unionists and campaigners, the NPF often hosts online consultations and in-person meetings with Shadow Cabinet members on specific policy areas. Behind closed doors, some senior figures look down upon this dynamic and (admittedly hazardous) process. They believe, often with good cause, that Labour’s active members – the ones most likely to speak on conference floor – are out of touch with the wider electorate. While all sides and factions claim to be huge supporters of party democracy in principle, this tends not to be the case in practice when in power. Consequently, leaders and their advisors freely admit in private that they do not feel bound by party conference decisions. There is a view that consultations with members are to be managed, rather than encouraged. Ultimately power is far more centralised than it might appear. That is why the majority of the essays focus on as the leader’s office (LOTO – or Leader Of The Opposition), trade unions and Shadow Cabinet members. Keeping control of the process In practice, the Labour manifesto has one author. For the next election, this role will be held by Rav Athwal , recently promoted from his position as Labour’s head of economic policy to director of policy. However, the final document is subject to a lengthy consultation process. Shadow Cabinet members, their advisors and in an ideal world, the respective policy teams in LOTO will develop policy according to their briefs. Labour campaign groups and affiliated trade unions and socialist societies are a key part of this process. A full list of these groups is available in Chapter 8: Affiliated Socialist Societies & Labour Group. Typically, the next step is a ‘Warwick Agreement’ between the leadership, NPF and trade unions, to thrash out an agreement on tricky issues. In 2004, the first meeting of this type took place on Warwick University’s campus and formed a major basis of the 2005 general election manifesto. The final stage of creating the manifesto is the “Clause V” meeting – so called from the fifth clause of the Labour Party rulebook, which specifies how the Party agrees its manifesto. The messy process of creating a Labour manifesto the rule states. At all levels the Party will ensure that members, elected representatives, affiliated organisations and, where practicable, the wider community are able to participate in the process of policy consideration and formulation,” The timing of this meeting is dependent on the preparedness of the Party for a general election, but tends to take place a matter of weeks before the campaign begins, or in the opening days after a general election is called. 10 HOW LABOUR WORKS This is typically a large gathering (around 80 in 2019), made up of shadow ministers, the parliamentary party, the NEC (including affiliated trade unions), the National Policy Forum, and devolved administrations such as Scottish and Welsh Labour leaders. Who is involved before this point is dependent on the leader and their head of policy. For instance, in 2019 Corbyn’s head of strategy and comms Seamus Milne was not shown the manifesto ahead of the ‘Clause V’ meeting, to protect against leaks. This consultative process plays out in the context of the day-to-day cut and thrust of opposition politics, as well as the overarching policy direction of Labour’s leadership. The drivers of this activity, with huge influence over what shadow ministers announce day-to-day and agreed ‘lines to take’, are Starmer’s key advisors. Currently this includes: Labour’s key advisors and the policy mood music Alongside this, Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considered ‘de-facto deputy leader’ due to her close relationship with Starmer and is brought in on all major decisions. Starmer trusts her political instincts and shrewdness on economic policy. Reeves and her team of advisors – including her chief of staff Katie Martin and head of comms Heather Iqbal – should be considered as part of engagement strategies. Reeve’s influence is seen in several areas of Labour policy making. Her first major intervention as Shadow Chancellor was her pledge to “make, buy and sell more in Britain under a Labour government”, a recurring policy theme with significant potential impact for British companies. With a focus on economic credibility, businesses will also need to ensure that policy proposals are fully costed to establish positive engagement. Longer-term policy thinking continues to take place as well - with the Party often seeking external advice in bespoke areas. Recently this has included Lord O’Neill’s review into entrepreneurship and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s report on devolution, which is explored more in Chapter 6: Devolved nations and metro mayors. How business should engage The policy creation process within the Labour Party is by its very nature, messy and political. For businesses, this does not mean that the Party’s democracy is irrelevant or can be ignored – far from it. Any engagement with Labour and key influencers should be done with knowledge and insight into the various debates taking place within the Party. That means understanding what the membership and different factions stand for, whether the policy area is referenced as part of the NPF’s process, or has been debated recently at a national conference. Starmer has begun to set out his policy priorities. Importantly, he has confirmed that the 2019 manifesto is ‘history’, which consigns many of the more radical Labour promises to the bin. In this vein, he has said that the Labour Party will not spend its way out of the country’s problems, and he is keen for a partnership with businesses to help solve the problems Britain faces – namely creating jobs and building the economy. Starmer has confirmed that his “take Back Control Bill” will be a central part of his first King’s Speech – which will seek to devolve further power from Westminster. The idea is to empower local communities “on skills, transport, planning and culture to drive growth”, including through sport. While there is a lot of detail still to be added to form a coherent programme, we already know key policy areas will include reforming public services and a green economy. For businesses, it is never too early to engage with Labour on policy formulation as part of their next general election manifesto. • Morgan McSweeney , Elections Director – Elections Director – ran Starmer’s leadership campaign, responsible for getting Labour election-ready, with oversight of candidate selection • Deborah Mattinson , Director of Strategy – founder of Britain Thinks. She leads Labour’s focus group and polling operation • Matthew Doyle , Communications Director – former head of press under Blair with a focus on raising Starmer’s profile and improving message discipline • Peter Hyman , Senior Advisor – working largely on strategic comms • Rav Athwal , Director of Policy charged with writing Labour’s next manifesto – an ex-treasury official with a good reputation 11 HOW LABOUR WORKS CHAPTER 2: Leader Of The Opposition By Daisy Robertson and Alastair Castle The Leader Of The Opposition (LOTO) is the title given to the leader of the political party in parliament that forms the Official Opposition, or the second largest party in the House of Commons. Throughout history, the Opposition has had three roles: to oppose, criticise and ultimately seek to replace the current government. The expectation of a modern opposition leader has been to scrutinise government policy across not just Whitehall, but traditional and social media as well. There are certain privileges that come with being LOTO. Some are parliamentary; if they table a motion of no confidence in the Government, it will be debated quickly in the commons. Others are financial; the main opposition party receives nearly one million pounds of public funding (or short money) every year. But it’s undeniably one of the hardest jobs in British politics. Starmer has a mountain to climb before walking into No 10. A well-worn truism in party circles is that even if Starmer delivered a swing comparable to Blair’s in 1997, he would still only have a majority of one. The pros and cons of being Leader Of The Opposition Every LOTO has a similar challenge: to successfully hold the Government to account while putting forward their own prospectus for power. It is a delicate balancing act that can make the job incredibly frustrating; policy announcements are either lambasted or stolen and your agenda is regularly set by your opponents. It is a tough gig at the best of times. Starmer became leader of the Labour Party in April 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. His victory came shortly after Labour’s worst election defeat in over eighty years, its fourth in a row, with the Party broke and divided. The then Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, was still enjoying very high approval ratings and an 80-seat majority. The circumstances of his elevation into the role made Starmer’s first months in power uniquely difficult. 1. The main role of the Opposition is the day-to-day parliamentary activities such as PMQs and scrutinising legislation. The pandemic meant Starmer was politically and practically unable to do this. 2. The second key job is party management. His advisors, mainly drawn from his leadership election campaign, were all working remotely during lockdown. Starmer couldn’t physically meet with MPs or travel to CLPs to solidify his support. Nor could he campaign to the wider public. His window of opportunity to define himself to the electorate was lost. 3. The third key job of LOTO is to build a credible policy programme and act as a government-in-waiting. After a slow start, Starmer’s team will argue he has begun to do this successfully. It’s a tough gig at the best of times 12 HOW LABOUR WORKS How business should engage The Party is in listening mode, as they look to develop their manifesto and key policies. Vidhya Alakeson, Director for External Relations, and her deputy Harjeet Sahota run a huge business engagement programme and should be prioritised. Although it will continue to be important to seek to engage with LOTO, they are time poor. For these reasons, the shadow team and the relevant leads for dedicated policy areas are likely worth prioritising when building relationships and seeking responses. The Labour Party is now on an election footing, and all business engagement will be seen through this lens. Policy priorities will be considered on their electoral as well as practical benefits, and consideration should be given by businesses on this basis. LOTO also includes their numerous advisors – some of which are detailed in Chapter 1: How is Policy Made in the Labour Party – who work closely with them and champion their cause to MPs and the media. While LOTO is regularly re-organised – as seen recently to create a much smaller Leader’s Office with more staff moved to the Campaign team – these staffers tend to be split across several functions: The wider LOTO team Comprised of a Chief of Staff, key advisors, events and speechwriters The Leader’s Office Led by the Campaign Director who oversee political management, political organising, campaigning, trade union liaison and political strategy as part of their brief Political Team Led by the Executive Director of Communications and including press and broadcast officers Press Team Led by the Executive Director of Policy where day-to-day decisions on policy positions and announcements by Shadow Cabinet are developed Policy Team 13 HOW LABOUR WORKS CHAPTER 3: The Shadow Cabinet By Nicole Perretta and Jack Reason How to create a Labour Shadow Cabinet The Shadow Cabinet is a key function of the Opposition. It consists of a team of parliamentarians who take up roles that often mirror the Government’s Cabinet. Their job is to scrutinise those they ‘shadow’ in government, develop policies for their party and attempt to play the role of a ‘government-in-waiting’. The politics of Starmer’s Shadow Cabinet Logically, it would be sensible for a leader to formulate a Shadow Cabinet which has a mix of seasoned communicators, those adept at policy, as well as die hard allies ready to defend and attack as needed. However, each leader will do something different depending on their political circumstances. Some may choose to pack their Shadow Cabinet with allies, as was seen during the Corbyn era. Others will attempt to create a broad church to appease party factions, such as Ed Miliband – whose Shadow Cabinet regularly included some of his opponents such as Ed Balls. The current Shadow Cabinet is reflective of Starmer’s ruthlessness – his reshuffles have included demotions for some of his political allies in place of people considered more qualified for the job. His current frontbench is packed with experienced MPs who have served under numerous leaders, like Yvette Cooper, the best communicators the party has such as David Lammy, and a younger swathe of ambitious MPs including Wes Streeting, Peter Kyle and Bridget Phillipson. Another heavyweight is Angela Rayner, currently holding numerous positions including Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office and Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work. Despite her often-challenging relationship with Starmer, she will likely have a big role in a future Labour government. It is well known that Starmer and his Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves enjoy a strong relationship. Some have likened their alliance as similar to that of Cameron and Osborne’s – where No. 10 and No. 11 were completely aligned on message and vision – rather than one mirroring the Johnson/Sunak relationship. It is rumoured that a reshuffle may be on the cards for the Labour Party, with a focus on removing poor performers. This will be an opportunity for Starmer to make any last-minute substitutes ahead of important moments – including the National Policy Forum’s meeting in July to define the manifesto – and in time to form a cohesive team ahead of the general election campaign. The role of a Shadow Cabinet in policy creation Labour’s Shadow Cabinet has a key role in policy formation within the Party and is influential in the creation of manifesto policies. This includes through: • A joint meeting, including the Shadow Cabinet, that decides which items from the Party programme shall be included in the manifesto issued by the NEC prior to every general election • The Shadow Cabinet is also influential on the NEC, with responsibility for nominating three frontbench MPs to sit on the NEC • Each Shadow Minister has principal responsibility for developing policy proposals in the policy areas covered in their ministerial remit, and is accountable for reporting and updating the Parliamentary Labour Party on this For businesses looking to influence a specific area of Labour policy, the Shadow Cabinet and their political advisors (PAds) will be an important place to begin. 14 HOW LABOUR WORKS Getting ready for government In this vein, Starmer has also recently been implementing a programme to ‘professionalise’ his Shadow Cabinet and ensure that they are ready for Government when the time comes. This includes running a number of government workshops for Shadow Cabinet members, led by the Institute for Government, which provide an overview of the expectations for them if they were to become Cabinet ministers. This is particularly important for this Shadow Cabinet – given the length of time that Labour has been out of power, there are few on it who have ever served in government. How business should engage Shadow Cabinet members are a key stakeholder for business but in the lead up to an election their time will be limited, and it is worth remembering that they have small teams with often only one or two policy advisors. If this is proving unsuccessful, the Shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has an informal role as a gateway for all businesses and can be utilised for engagement. 15 HOW LABOUR WORKS CHAPTER 4: Parliamentary Labour Party & their Constituency Labour Parties By Connor Whittam and Conor O’Brien The Parliamentary Labour Party The PLP is made up of the Members of Parliament (MPs) who are elected under the Labour Whip. Currently there are 195 Labour MPs, each with their own backgrounds, ambitions and competing pressures. The ultimate power of the PLP comes from the UK constitution. Parliament is sovereign and MPs have the power to prevent or create policy through voting in Parliament. So in reality, without the support of its parliamentary cohort, a party is unable to effect meaningful change. Similarly, the Westminster system offers other opportunities to influence for those in the PLP, including select committees, APPGs, and the drumbeat of debates. Each MP can draw on business costs support and receives around £300,000 for staffing and office costs, with the amount varying depending on location. This money is used to employ staffers, advisors, press officers and campaigners – who should be seen as avenues for engagement. This represents a distinct advantage over other arms of the Labour Party who rely on limited party funds to pay for their activity. The PLP Chair, currently John Cryer MP , is elected by its membership, and coordinates its activities. The PLP meets regularly to voice their collective concerns to the Party leadership and contains a number of internal groups such as Women’s and LGBT+ Committees, as well as policy boards. As with all parties, there is a whipping system to enforce party discipline during voting. Labour’s Whips are responsible for ensuring that PLP members vote in accordance with the views of LOTO. The Party membership, represented by their CLPs, is a force not to be overlooked. CLPs are broken down into smaller branches, generally organised on the level of council wards. Taken together, these branches form the most local level of the Labour Party’s formal structure: the Branch Labour Party (BLP). Each BLP selects candidates for the local council and sends delegates to represent the branch at the CLP. BLPs also serve a practical purpose for local campaigning. CLPs are crucial to the Party’s campaigning. Most CLPs elect a number of Campaigns Officers who direct local campaigning activity. Coordination between CLPs is organised at the Local Campaign Forum (LCFs). The CLP also serves as a fundraising arm of the Party. The liveliness and politics of a branch or CLP will vary. In some safe Conservative rural seats, local Labour parties are often moribund. In and around large cities – like London and Manchester – there can be hundreds of active members in each parliamentary constituency. There are approximately: CLPs The bedrock of Labour politics is the CLP. Each UK parliamentary constituency has an associated CLP made up of local Labour members, councillors, trade unions and socialist societies, as well as the Labour MP. As the Labour Party Constitution makes clear: Social change comes from a combination of progressive government at the centre and community action”. Labour Party members in the UK 432,000 than the Conservative Party 2.5 times more as many as Liberal Democrat members Nearly 6 times 16 HOW LABOUR WORKS Deselection A sitting MP may be deselected as the candidate if they lose a ‘trigger ballot’. A trigger ballot decides whether the incumbent MP has to undergo a reselection process and compete with other PPCs to be put forward as the parliamentary candidate for a given constituency. Each BLP branch and all affiliated organisations – unions and socialist societies – vote in a trigger ballot, with votes counted separately. However at party conference in 2021, Starmer narrowly got through controversial rule change reforms which made it harder to deselect MPs. This in turn, has reorientated the focus of the PLP from activists to the voting public. Selection A route through which CLPs can best influence the political future of the party is by selecting the prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) for their constituency. This is a central, albeit controversial, function of the CLP who, in theory, have the final vote on who represents them. This does not always play out in practice. The internal divisions of the Labour Party are often reflected in the selection process and there has been conflict between CLPs and the national party, with allegations that the NEC have been allowed to pre-screen candidates standing in constituencies across the UK for the coming election. Conference As mentioned in Chapter 1: How the Labour Party Makes Policy , a third key function of the CLP is to represent the will of the membership at Labour’s party conference. In this function, each CLP will send delegates to the conference and use the event to debate and vote on motions that should, in theory, direct the activity of the NEC, and therefore the policy framework and strategic direction of the Party as a whole. The details of the policy proposals are decided in the National Policy Forum (NPF). However, in practice, the NEC has frequently paid little attention to the motions put forward at conferences by the membership. At Labour’s 2022 conference, delegates voted overwhelmingly in favour of adopting a proportional representation electoral system, a move which has been ignored by the Party leadership, and which is unlikely to be included in Labour’s next ma