Staff Writer Callum McGee reflects on Keir Starmer’s message at the Labour Party conference, emphasising justice, unity and a fight for the soul of Britain.
“A fight for the soul of our country”. Those were the words of Keir Starmer as he took to the stage to outline his vision of what Britain really is: not spray-painted roundabouts, nor the image of a Britain broke and broken touted by right-wing grifters on Twitter (currently known as X) but, in the words of the Prime Minister, a “decent, pragmatic, tolerant, reasonable country that throughout history has stood its ground”. A country of anti-racism, a shared sense of common decency, a United Kingdom.
After a year plus change in government (no pun intended), expectations were high for the second Conference since Labour entered office. With bold speeches from Cabinet ministers, a number of policy announcements, and even a guest appearance from Australian Prime Minister Anthony “Albo” Albanese (who affectionately referred to Starmer as “my mate Keir”), the eyes of the nation were on the Labour Party.
“The British State refused to see injustice because of who the victims are… now injustice has no place to hide” – Keir Starmer on the Hillsborough disaster
Beginning with a touching tribute to those who lost their lives in the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, we saw a politics of humanity rather than hate. Not only were 97 innocent people killed with hundreds more injured, but the victims were continually denied justice, wrongfully vilified by the press, and let down by the British government. The very first speaker to take to the stage as the Conference began was Charlotte Hennessy, daughter of James Hennessy, who was killed at Hillsborough when she was just 6 years old.
Following the government’s announcement that the Hillsborough Law, also known as the Public Office (Accountability) Bill, will be passed in full (having been introduced to Parliament a week prior), the Prime Minister acknowledged that “we can never undo the pain for you and all the other families” but that this Hillsborough Law would have “served a degree of justice”.
This was followed by a heartfelt rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by the Liverpool Show Choir, a display of hope and unity. The entire conference floor, many through tears, stood to sing alongside the choir, the Prime Minister, and the lifelong campaigners in the room. Two days later, Starmer was introduced ahead of his concluding Leader’s speech by Margaret Aspinall, whose 18-year-old son James was killed in the tragedy. Charlotte and Margaret, both dedicated campaigners, reflected on the impact this legislation will have in ensuring that no other families ever have to go through what they did again.
“Working-class families will know exactly what I mean” – Keir Starmer on the pressures working-class young people face to excel in higher education
For young people, the Prime Minister spoke directly to working-class households. He announced that the longstanding target of 50% of young people attending university will be scrapped and replaced with a target of two-thirds taking up either university or gold standard apprenticeships. Starmer said that the 50% target was not “right for our times”, with further education often overlooked “because politicians’ kids don’t go there.”
Joking that “by now you know what my father did for a living”, he shared a personal perspective. Highlighting how disrespected his father felt for working with his hands, he asked, “Do we genuinely as a country afford [apprenticeships] the same respect?” In an age of rehearsed soundbites and buzzword politics, it was undeniable that the Prime Minister was speaking with his own raw conviction, his own values prevailing. Starmer, who by some measure is not a politician by nature, was speaking to people who might not have been spoken to by politicians for a long time.
“When was the last time you heard Nigel Farage say anything positive about Britain’s future? He can’t. He doesn’t like Britain, doesn’t believe in Britain.” – Keir Starmer on Nigel Farage
The election battle cry of “national renewal” cropped up through Starmer’s address to the conference floor, driving the Party back to a campaign footing. A clear choice was being set out between Labour and “the politics of grievance” with Reform UK, following the parties’ announcement that they would scrap Indefinite Leave to Remain for migrants. With this, Farage has threatened to break up families, deport our neighbours, doctors, small business owners, and hundreds of thousands of hardworking people across our country who have contributed so much to our communities, culture and economy.
There was a clear message from the Prime Minister to anyone perpetuating racism in our country or suggesting that you can’t be British based on the colour of your skin: “We will fight you with everything we have.”
“Our country faces a choice… we can choose decency or we can choose division, renewal or decline” – Keir Starmer on the choice between Labour and Reform UK
At a time of heightened tensions, growing aggression, and rising fear, the assurance from the greatest office of state that our government will not bend to racism and right-wing gutter politics is welcomed. It did, however, serve as a reminder of just how high the stakes are. Taking notes from recently re-elected Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who reflected that “in difficult times, we offered hope”, the resounding message of this Labour conference was clear: you’ll never walk alone.
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