Labour warned not to become ‘1990s tribute act’ to Tony Blair by union chief
A union chief has warned Labour not to become a “1990s tribute act” to Tony Blair if it wins the next general election.
Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, said the party needed to be bolder with its economic policies if it wanted to make a difference for working people.
Writing in The Sunday Times, she said Britain was in a “very different place” to when the party last came to power in 1997 – when there was money to spend and the economy grew “without having to do much except keep their hands firmly on the tiller”.
She argued that a “light touch” approach would not work during the cost of living crisis that has left working people “existing and not living” and some of Labour’s flagship policies – like it’s “diminished Green New Deal” don’t go far enough.
“For working people to share in the spoils and avoid the pitfalls, the future will have to be negotiated,” she wrote.
“That means, consigning 1997 to the history books.”
Ms Graham called for “serious intervention underpinned by a strategic plan” – arguing bold policies like nationalising energy should be put on the table if Labour is “serious about changing society”.
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In a lengthy critique, she said refusing to tax wealth or excess profits and a lack of a coherent industrial plan were “all severely limiting Labour’s options” and economic reform was needed.
In a warning to Sir Keir Starmer, she said: “If Labour is intent on becoming a 1990s tribute act in an age where laissez faire does not belong, big questions will remain unanswered.
“Where will the money come from? What are we going to be left with? If it ends up being austerity by another name plus the hyping of comparatively small-scale investment, it won’t be an enticing prospect.
“Better than the other lot? For sure. But a government to lead Britain out of decline and make it work for everyday people? Probably not.”
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Starmer addresses new shadow cabinet
Ms Graham’s piece came after a shadow cabinet reshuffle saw those on the more Blairite wing of the party, including Liz Kendall, Pat McFadden and Shabana Mahmood, rewarded with promotions, while some associated with the soft left were purged.
Sir Keir’s spokesperson has denied acting ideologically, saying he has assembled a top team that is ready to govern if it wins the next election.
After more than a decade out of power, Sir Keir is hoping to become the first Labour prime minister to win at the ballot box since Tony Blair – who won two terms after his landslide victory in 1997.
He has sought to rebuild the party focusing on a more centrist style than his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, with a focus on fiscal Conservatism.
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Labour’s policies are likely to come under further scrutiny in the coming days, as unions convene in Liverpool for the annual TUC conference.
Issues being debated this week include employment rights and the cost of living crisis.
Writing in the Sunday Mirror, deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner promised the “biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation”.
She said this included beefing up laws that ban firms from blacklisting union workers.
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Ms Rayner, who will give a speech at the TUC conference on Tuesday, wrote: “Blacklisting doesn’t just ruin livelihoods, it ruins lives. It’s a destructive practice that leaves people locked out of work, often facing poverty as a result.”
The government’s controversial anti-strikes bill is also expected to come under attack at the conference.
Officials say the new law, requiring minimum service levels during industrial action, is unnecessary and unworkable and will do nothing to resolve disputes.
Unions, including the RMT and Fire Brigade Union, will call for a legal challenge to the legislation during debates at the conference.
Politics
Sir Keir Starmer vows to defend budget decisions ‘all day long’ as farmers slam ‘disrespectful’ PM
Sir Keir Starmer has said he will defend the decisions made in the budget “all day long” amid anger from farmers over inheritance tax changes.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced last month in her key speech that from April 2026, farms worth more than £1m will face an inheritance tax rate of 20%, rather than the standard 40% applied to other land and property.
The announcement has sparked anger among farmers who argue this will mean higher food prices, lower food production and having to sell off land to pay for the tax.
Sir Keir defended the budget as he gave his first speech as prime minister at the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno, North Wales, where farmers have been holding a tractor protest outside.
Sir Keir admitted: “We’ve taken some extremely tough decisions on tax.”
He said: “I will defend facing up to the harsh light of fiscal reality. I will defend the tough decisions that were necessary to stabilise our economy.
“And I will defend protecting the payslips of working people, fixing the foundations of our economy, and investing in the future of Britain and the future of Wales. Finally, turning the page on austerity once and for all.”
He also said the budget allocation for Wales was a “record figure” – some £21bn for next year – an extra £1.7bn through the Barnett Formula, as he hailed a “path of change” with Labour governments in Wales and Westminster.
And he confirmed a £160m investment zone in Wrexham and Flintshire will be going live in 2025.
‘PM should have addressed the protesters’
Among the hundreds of farmers demonstrating was Gareth Wyn Jones, who told Sky News it was “disrespectful” that the prime minister did not mention farmers in his speech.
He said “so many people have come here to air their frustrations. He (Starmer) had an opportunity to address the crowd. Even if he was booed he should have been man enough to come out and talk to the people”.
He said farmers planned to deliver Sir Keir a letter which begins with “‘don’t bite the hand that feeds you”.
Farmers’ tractor protest outside the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno, North Wales
Mr Wyn Jones told Sky News the government was “destroying” an industry that was already struggling.
“They’re destroying an industry that’s already on its knees and struggling, absolutely struggling, mentally, emotionally and physically. We need government support not more hindrance so we can produce food to feed the nation.”
He said inheritance tax changes will result in farmers increasing the price of food: “The poorer people in society aren’t going to be able to afford good, healthy, nutritious British food, so we have to push this to government for them to understand that enough is enough, the farmers can’t take any more of what they’re throwing at us.”
Mr Wyn Jones disputed the government’s estimation that only 500 farming estates in the UK will be affected by the inheritance tax changes.
“Look, a lot of farmers in this country are in their 70s and 80s, they haven’t handed their farms down because that’s the way it’s always been, they’ve always known there was never going to be inheritance tax.”
On Friday, Sir Keir addressed farmers’ concerns, saying: “I know some farmers are anxious about the inheritance tax rules that we brought in two weeks ago.
“What I would say about that is, once you add the £1m for the farmland to the £1m that is exempt for your spouse, for most couples with a farm wanting to hand on to their children, it’s £3m before anybody pays a penny in inheritance tax.”
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Welsh farmer Gareth Wyn Jones
Ministers said the move will not affect small farms and is aimed at targeting wealthy landowners who buy up farmland to avoid paying inheritance tax.
But analysis this week said a typical family farm would have to put 159% of annual profits into paying the new inheritance tax every year for a decade and could have to sell 20% of their land.
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The Country and Land Business Association (CLA), which represents owners of rural land, property and businesses in England and Wales, found a typical 200-acre farm owned by one person with an expected profit of £27,300 would face a £435,000 inheritance tax bill.
The plan says families can spread the inheritance tax payments over 10 years, but the CLA found this would require an average farm to allocate 159% of its profits each year for a decade.
To pay that, successors could be forced to sell 20% of their land, the analysis found.
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A former Conservative MP has said he felt “enormous guilt” when he found out he was the victim of a Westminster honeytrap scandal.
William Wragg resigned from the parliamentary party in April after he admitted giving out fellow politicians’ phone numbers to the suspected perpetrator of the sexting scam.
He said he felt threatened and pressured by the “catfish” after exchanging explicit photos with them.
Mr Wragg divulged the numbers to what he thought was a real person on a dating app, amid fears that the intimate images of himself would be leaked.
The former Tory party whip said he first saw news articles about the scandal when he was on a train.
The 36-year-old told the BBC: “My stomach just dropped.
“When I found out some of the things that had been going on, I just felt enormous guilt, enormous remorse.”
After the former Hazel Grove MP handed over the personal information, the catfish told Mr Wragg to vouch for their identity with their next potential victims, with the catfish telling their fresh targets they were a former researcher for Mr Wragg.
Mr Wragg agreed and this is what he feels “the most regret for” as it was “deceitful”.
Pic: PA
Panic attacks
After he was allegedly blackmailed, Mr Wragg started having panic attacks, with instances of yelling, crying, and swearing shocking his sleeping flatmates.
Police are investigating the scandal with at least 12 men with links to Westminster believed to have received unsolicited messages from the aliases “Charlie” and “Abi”.
The fake accounts were allegedly part of the scam to get MPs and other people in politics to send explicit images and other private or sensitive information.
Unlike others who were approached by the catfish accounts, Mr Wragg approached “Charlie” himself after spotting the profile on gay dating app Grindr.
And he thought the account was a real person before exchanging explicit photos with the catfish.
Suicidal thoughts
When the scandal broke, the humiliation and shame became too much for Mr Wragg.
He recounted photographers and the media camped outside his parents’ house, which is where he went to as he began to have suicidal thoughts.
Shortly after receiving medical attention, he returned to Westminster to resign as Conservative whip and from his posts on two parliamentary committees.
He had already announced he would not run in the next general election.
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Man detained
In June, a member of the Labour Party aged in his mid-20s was apprehended in Islington, north London, on suspicion of harassment and offences under the Online Safety Act.
He has since been released on bail.
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK.
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