In this episode, Tom talks to John Rentoul, the Chief Political Commentator at The Independent. Rentoul enjoyed a front row seat to the New Labour project, writing one of the very first biographies of Tony Blair, co-authoring an analysis of Blair’s premiership with Prof. Jon Davis, and teaching on the ongoing ‘New Labour Years’ module at King’s College London.
During the interview, Rentoul points out that, in just 4 years, Keir Starmer tried to do what Neil Kinnock, John Smith and Tony Blair did over 14 years: rebrand the Labour Party
and prepare it for government. As a leadership election looms, this is crucial food for thought. If we keep changing prime minister every 2 years (let alone 49 days), is it any wonder that the newcomer struggles to implement their agenda (assuming they have one)?
(00:00) - (02:45) | Introduction
(02:45) - (08:34) | John’s time at uni and his route into journalism.
(08:34) - (10:18) | Comparing the British press at the beginning of John’s career and now.
(10:18) - (16:30) | Why Tony Blair? And the process of writing a biography.
(16:30) - (20:18) | Why John progressively became more of a fan over time.
(20:18) - (21:20) | On a spectrum from Corbyn to Blair, where would Keir Starmer be?
(21:20) - (23:10) | Rebranding the Labour Party. Why the New Labour brand was more successful than the post-Corbyn brand change.
(23:10) - (25:23) | Starmer and Blair’s similar majorities, but different power. Could Starmer learn any lessons from Blair’s leadership of the party?
(25:23) - (26:19) | Starmer has tried to do what Kinnock, Smith and Blair did over 14 years in just 4.
(26:19) - (27:18) | The consequence: Starmer was not focused on preparing for government.
(27:18) - (28:47) | Will there be a party with a stable political base again? Why John thinks MPs should choose their party’s leader.
(28:47) - (30:04) | Of Blair’s successors, whose reputation will grow over time?
(30:04) - (33:49) | What being a Chief Political Commentator involves and advice for budding political journalists.
(33:49) - (35:34) | “Questions to which the answer is no.”
(35:34) - (37:28) | Book recommendation to aid understanding of New Labour. Perhaps unsurprising: Blair’s memoir, A Journey.
(37:28) | Outro
Fion Cudmore - https://www.linkedin.com/in/fionnuala-cudmore-293089269/
Tom Turner - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomturner04/
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