We are nearing the 10th anniversary of the longest sustained and most successful period of Labour government in our party’s history under our most successful Labour leader and, in my view, one of our greatest ever prime ministers. Whereas the last century was overwhelmingly a conservative century, Tony has given us the chance to make this century, Labour’s century. We cannot entrench progressive change in a decade, but only in a sustained period of government – we need a fourth term to cement in the fundamental changes to society we’ve started to make; and ensure the Tories could never undo what we have achieved.

However, all parties must renew themselves if they are to continue to enjoy the support of the electorate and remain connected to their priorities and aspirations. Renewing in government is much harder. We’ve never succeeded in doing it. In recent history, neither have the Tories. But we can do it, and we now have the opportunity to do so.

We now have the opportunity for a healthy, and I hope comradely, open debate in the party in the coming months. Not a fundamental debate on our aims and values – we don’t need that. I believe we are ideologically united as a movement. Unlike the Tories under Cameron, who have failed to have that tough debate about values and ideology – and have chosen to rely on spin and a spray-job – we actually settled our internal debate in the mid-90s. Of course we do need to debate policy and how we best achieve the historic goals of our movement.

I welcome the fact that we seem likely to have contests for the leader and deputy leader of the party, although I believe that no one could or should beat Gordon. I think that he, along with Tony, is the other towering figure of our movement. I believe his record as chancellor and his vision for the future, make him the right person to ensure our renewal and our continued period in office.

I would be proud to be Gordon’s deputy and will stand to be deputy leader of the Labour party whenever that contest takes place. Not simply for the sake of seeking office for its own sake, but because I believe I can contribute to the process of party reform and renewal.

That process I believe needs to be made up of two elements.

First, we need to reconnect the leadership of the party in government, with the wider party in the country – with our MPs, with our members, and with the trade unions. I believe we can bind the party back together and go united, as we must, into the next election.

I’ve long been concerned – and spoken out – on the disconnect that exists between the government and the party. We’ve often seemed simply to hand down policies from on high, and too often our communication with the party feels like a lecture, rather than a dialogue. Under Hazel’s chairmanship of the party, and Ian McCartney’s before her, there has been a real genuine improvement and a proper desire to achieve a better way of working – not least to make the policy-making process work and to connect the party back into our communities at a local level. Now we need to go further and show a new respect for the different and diverse parts of our party.

Second, as well as binding the party back together, we need to reconnect the progressive coalition that Tony and Gordon so successfully brought together before 1997. I believe that coalition has been fractured, if not shattered, and I believe that with a positive, exciting and radical programme of progressive policies, we can bring back to Labour those that have splintered off.

There are four key areas where I believe, if we can demonstrate a renewed passion and hunger for delivering real change, we can win back those we have lost – and thereby recreate the coalition that has crumbled.

First, we need a new drive to achieve social justice for all. We’ve done a huge amount to lift up out of poverty those at the very bottom – through the minimum wage, tax credits, child benefit rises, as well as helping people back to work through the New Deal. But now we need to also take steps to narrow the gap between the rich and the poor.

Second, we need to recommit ourselves to dispersing and handing down power, and to personal empowerment and liberty. Devolution has been one of our proudest achievements. But we now need to revitalise local government, with greater responsibility and economic freedom. And, while not in any way becoming soft on security – and certainly not in the days after the anniversary of 9/11 – we also need to ensure we do not sacrifice hard fought for civil liberties and get the right balance between the power of the state, and the freedoms of the citizen.

Third, we need to complete the process of democratic renewal. I believe this must include electoral reform to introduce fair votes for the Commons. Not PR, because I believe in retaining the constituency link with MPs, but the Alternative Vote. And we need an elected second chamber.

Fourth, and most importantly – because our whole future and our children’s future depends on it – we need to place the green agenda at the very heart of our agenda across all parts of government and all areas of policy. And that means a huge push on renewable energy as the real and only solution to tackling climate change. As well as commitments to new technologies that can reduce transport pollution, and new steps to reduce waste.

I believe that if we can commit to great strides forward in these four areas, we can go a long way to recreating the coalition that united progressives behind us in 1997.

So, if we can achieve these two things – if we can forge a new bond between the leadership of the party and MPs, members and the unions and if we can reach out, with a radical vision for the future, to those people who have become disillusioned with our government – then I believe we can reassemble that progressive coalition and we can achieve that fourth term. And by reforming and renewing the party, we can defeat the Conservatives and earn the chance to make an even greater difference to the lives of those we came into politics to serve.