WHO LOST THE 1997 general election? Or, to put that another way, who won? We know this! Tony Blair. And how? New Labour, obviously. Along with the Third Way, Clintonian campaigning techniques, the red rose, “Bobby”, Philip Gould and The Unfinished Revolution, a paradoxically improving economy, Gordon, China, Granita.
Much as this might read as a man in his 50s having a stroke, it’s also a narrative. Which, for some time now, people have grimly asserted Sir Keir Starmer lacks. And how could he possibly win without one of those? Quite handily, it’s turning out.
Not that it didn’t take some sneering to knock away the idea that oppositions somehow win elections rather than governments always, always, always losing them. Snide people had to caw about Labour’s lead being soft,…
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The Critic (Digital) - 1 Issue, April 2024