After much attention on process, structures and rules, the party knows its choice and can now turn to the substance of what the candidates stand for and what Labour supporters should really be looking for in a new leader.
To state the obvious, this contest is about much more than sending a different person to the next general election TV debates. It has to be about showing what Labour has learned both from the election and a changed economic context. This means focusing clearly on the public as well as on the party.
Below, in no particular order, I set out 10 suggested points for the next Labour leader.
1. Understand that what much of the public means by fairness and what Labour politicians mean are often different things. For many people, fairness in public services is about the concept of exchange – people feel they have paid in and on that basis can draw down, be it in health treatment, social housing, pensions and so on. Yet often, public goods are not allocated on the basis of exchange but purely on the basis of need. It may be argued this is the fairest way yet the absence of an inbuilt concept of reciprocity lies at the root of much anger about issues as varied as the banks, housing allocation, welfare benefits and immigration. Those who raise concerns on these issues are not bigots. They are asserting that fairness should be about what you put in, as well as what you take out.
2. Be a champion of industry. We stand on the cusp of a second industrial revolution as we make the transition to a lower carbon economy. It poses challenges but also presents huge opportunities. Britain should seize them. We should believe in a Britain that makes things as well as delivering good services. We are stronger in manufacturing than we think. Tory and Lib Dem question marks over Labour’s support for new industrial opportunities like the nuclear supply chain, wind turbine manufacture and low carbon vehicles, as well as the government’s plans to cut investment allowances for new machinery pose a real threat to the modernisation of our manufacturing industries. The coalition shows every sign of not understanding the active role needed by government in this area and for a new leader this is a cause worth fighting with passion and determination.
3. Empower people. The days of take what you are given should be left behind. The ‘Big Society’ is code for abandonment because it will be an excuse for withdrawing support from communities, but empowerment matched by resources is good and will liberate people from substandard services and from the frustration often felt by those dealing with bureaucracy. Those with financial means already enjoy power and choice. Finding a way to put similar power and choice in the hands of all should be an important aim of the centre left in the 21st century and should be at the heart of what we have to say about public services.
4. Equip people for the future and make access to the jobs of the future a core part of life. Talk of new industries and new jobs will ring hollow if people don’t feel they have a chance to do the new jobs. People need the chance to learn not only at school but in adult life too. It should be part of government’s contract with the public that we will give them every chance to do the jobs of the future. Whoever can simplify and sharpen the skills offer in apprenticeships, in work training, regular chances to study throughout life and taking pride in the technical skills needed to do a job well will do a great service to both individual opportunity and wider economic success.
5. Remember that our passion for public services in the common good is only meaningful to people if they feel safe in their own homes and their own streets. Empower people to fight against those who destroy the quality of life in local areas. Fighting antisocial behaviour and crime and sticking up for the decent people who obey the rules and show respect to others should be a core Labour cause.
6. Support wealth creation as well as its distribution. Labour should be passionate that Britain must be a vibrant entrepreneurial economy and have as its ambition to be among the best countries in the world in which to do business. We were right to improve employment rights, but we must also show that we understand business is not simply a policy cashpoint from which endless withdrawals can be made.
7. Understand the security threat we face. The attacks on the London underground were not an isolated incident. There have been other plots since and the ideology behind these attempts is alive and in all likelihood planning more. Behind all the talk of sweeping away the ‘surveillance state’ lies a danger of complacency in simply wishing away the threat that we face.
8. Help families balance home and work life. Time is a precious resource. We can’t make more of it. So it is right that we help young families and parents trying to hold down jobs and raise young children. And we should be delivering public services in a way most convenient to the customer, not the supplier.
9. Reward work and endeavour. There are few resentments greater than the notion that thrift and responsibility become penalised because some who could work don’t. The incentives should point to work making you better off.
10. Be optimistic about the future. Yes, the recession has been tough but the coming years don’t have to be a dark and austere period. This country has great strengths and is regarded as a wonderful country right around the world. Britain isn’t broken. Be proud of what we are. Give hope about what we can become.