London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Sep 01, 2025

Keir Starmer urged to create ‘political cabinet’ with other UK Labour leaders

Keir Starmer urged to create ‘political cabinet’ with other UK Labour leaders

PR experts tell party leader to utilise well-respected figures such as Andy Burnham and Mark Drakeford
Keir Starmer should invite the Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham, and the Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, to join a powerful new “political cabinet” to help Labour shape policy and get its message across to voters, according to a report by PR experts.

“Fit for the future” published by a 1,200-strong network called Labour in Communications, urges Starmer to slim down the shadow cabinet and give a more prominent role to well-respected Labour leaders from around the UK.

The experts also call on Starmer to avoid reams of detailed policy in favour of a more pared-down offering that could ultimately be represented on a 1997-style “pledge card”.

“Labour should look to restructure the shadow cabinet and communicate through a leaner group of members to improve the perception and awareness of Labour’s shadow cabinet among the public,” the report says, highlighting the low public profile and lack of government experience of some on the current frontbench.

“The grouping would effectively operate as a ‘political cabinet’ and would have sole responsibility, as Labour’s dedicated spokespeople, to frame, develop and communicate Labour’s message to the public,” the report adds.

“Figures in power from across the Labour movement – such as Mark Drakeford, Andy Burnham, Sadiq Khan, Tracy Brabin and Steve Rotheram – should be invited to join the political cabinet and given the chance to influence the party’s national strategy and decision-making.”

Including Starmer, Labour’s shadow cabinet currently has 34 members. The shadow cabinet has a formal standing under Labour’s rulebook – but leaders have often taken advice from smaller groupings.

At the height of the Covid-19 crisis, Starmer relied on regular meetings of an inner group, including senior figures such as Rachel Reeves and Nick Thomas-Symonds, to make key decisions – though Drakeford, Burnham and others would probably be too busy with their day-jobs to offer such intensive input.

Burnham was re-elected as Manchester metro mayor with 67% of the vote in May. He became a prominent critic of the government’s Covid policies at key moments during the pandemic, when much of the north-west of England faced stringent lockdown restrictions.

He has not ruled out a return to Westminster and some Labour MPs believe he could be a future leadership candidate.

With Starmer’s first in-person conference speech looming later this month, Labour in Communications urge the Labour leader not to be tempted into setting out a long list of detailed policies or a sweeping political vision.

“All too often politicians feel like they have to set out what George HW Bush disparagingly called ‘the vision thing’: a West Wing-style speech setting out a political leader’s core beliefs that can get voters’ hearts going. Instead, what Keir Starmer should do is concentrate on answering a simple question: why are you in politics and what are you setting out to achieve?” they say.

In a foreword to the report, the former Labour leader Neil Kinnock says: “Not for the first time, we have to rebuild, modernise our methods, restore relevance to our message, show that we have deep commitment to our country and communities and practical answers to the demands facing the British people”.

Tony Blair’s Labour party fought the 1997 general election with the aid of a five-point pledge card, featuring promises including cutting class sizes for five- to seven-year-olds, and cutting NHS waiting lists by treating an extra 100,000 patients.

The report suggests Labour should work towards a similarly bold offering at the next general election, which could come as soon as 2023 – and meanwhile should focus on developing a “unifying narrative” to explain its approach.

Labour in Communications brings together Labour-supporting communications professionals from charities and the private sector as well as inside politics.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×