Starmer, who stood down as Prime Minister in July, had served as an MP since 2015 and became shadow immigration minister and shadow Brexit secretary under Jeremy Corbyn.

Following the 2019 election defeat, Starmer was elected leader of the Labour Party with 56.2 percent in April 2020, going onto secure a landslide election victory for Labour in the 2024 general election.

However, despite successes including the Employment Rights Act, Renters’ Rights Act and legislation to renationalise the railways, Starmer saw his approval plummet among the public and faced criticism over successive policy U-turns and the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador.

After announcing his resignation as Prime Minister, Starmer told MPs: “This is the end of my political journey. Every Prime Minister knows when they take up the torch that the day will come when they have to pass it on. That day has come for me.”

Starmer’s resignation as an MP will trigger a by-election in Holborn and St Pancras – the seventh by-election of this Parliament and first in London since the resignation of former Prime Minister as an MP Boris Johnson in Uxbridge and South Ruislip in 2013.

It has been an honour and a privilege to represent Holborn and St Pancras for the last 11 years.

My statement. pic.twitter.com/xzu4xcIno2

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) September 1, 2026

In a statement on social media, Starmer said: “Over the summer, I have had time to reflect and consider my future. I have decided that now is the right time to step down as MP for Holborn and St Pancras and hand the baton over to a successor.

“It’s been an honour and privilege to represent the best constituency in the country since taking over from the great Frank Dobson 11 years ago. But it is now time to step aside and focus on other issues: international affairs including defence, security, trade and technology in a fast changing world. I will also continue working with others as I have done over many decades to tackle violence against women and girls.

“As I do that, I will always remain immensely proud to have represented the place Vic, the kids and I call home.

“There will now be a process to appoint my successor ahead of a by-election. Whoever is lucky enough to become the Labour candidate here will have my full support and backing and I will continue to give my full support to the Prime Minister and this Labour government.”

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‘This will not be an easy by-election’

The by-election looks set to be a close fight between Labour and the Green Party, after the Greens made significant gains in Camden in May’s local elections. Green Party leader Zack Polanski is rumoured to be interested as standing for the seat, with a spokesperson telling The Guardian: “Zack has always made it clear he would like to be a London MP.”

Emma Burnell, editor of LabourList, said: “The Labour Party owes Keir Starmer a debt of gratitude for the work he did both as Leader of the opposition to make the party electable and for winning a large mandate for change at the election.

“While I am sure he is disappointed with how his premiership ended he can also be -proud of much of the work that was done in fixing the foundations that will now be built on by his successor.

“This will not be an easy by-election for Labour. Camden Council – in which the seat falls – saw a large loss to the Greens and Liberal Democrats in the recent local elections. This will be a key early electoral test for the turnaround Labour has seen over the summer. It will also be a test of whether the Greens can translate their recent local success on the national stage.”

‘Starmer left the country in a better place than he found it’

Tributes have been paid by some Labour MPs following the news.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, who served as Paymaster General under Starmer, said: “Keir led Labour from its worst defeat since 1935 to a landslide victory in 2024. His work as Prime Minister left the country in a better place than he found it.

“Thank you, Keir, for all your service and all best wishes to you and your family for the future.”

Former Cabinet minister Peter Kyle said that Starmer’s achievements were “too numerous for a tweet” and said he “led with grit, driven by a love of country”.

Jo Stevens, who served as Starmer’s Welsh Secretary, said his resignation from as an MP would be a “great loss to the Parliamentary Labour Party and to Parliament”.

She said: “In every one of his many roles, he has served our party and his constituents with great diligence and dedication. I will miss him as a colleague, but I’m pretty certain this is not the last we will hear about Keir, a great public servant.”

More to follow.

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It is this new approach, radical policies to fix Britain, coupled with his star power of connecting with voters through social media, that has restored Labour’s electoral chances over the summer. As the shine comes off Reform and the Greens, recent polls have shown strong favourability for Burnham as Labour reached 30 percent in one opinion poll over the summer.

All of this leaves me puzzled as to why Chancellor John Healey, in an interview with Sky News last week, said Burnham’s government offered “continuity” from the Starmer administration. His downplaying of the government’s commitment to hike defence spending – the very issue that prompted Healey’s resignation from Starmer’s government – also risks people questioning the principles of Burnham and his ministers.

Of course, there is no suggestion that Burnham should jettison every commitment and policy set out by his predecessor. Many achievements during his time, such as the Employment Rights Act, were important Labour accomplishments – and a complete abandonment of the 2024 manifesto would pile pressure on the government for a snap election.

However, Burnham’s opportunity lies precisely in demonstrating to the public that his government is different. If voters believe they are simply being offered Starmerism with a new face at the top, they will have little reason to change their minds about Labour.

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With the public impatient for change and willing to look elsewhere if they don’t see it, continuity will not cut it. If the last six weeks have been anything to go by, Burnham intrinsically understands that – with his willingness to offer up quick wins to the electorate rather than hoping to satisfy them with the promise of ‘jam tomorrow’.

Burnham faces major tests in the coming weeks, as he grapples with the Budget and the big questions facing the country on immigration, welfare and even electoral reform. The Prime Minister should grasp the nettle and not shirk away from offering bold solutions to the country’s challenges.

Labour promised the country change in 2024 – it’s time that we deliver the radical transformation they voted for.

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Week in, week out, Labour councils, working in partnership with the NHS, Homes England and the Labour Government, are getting things done for their local communities on the things that matter to local people.

Every week, ‘LabourList’ brings you a selection of the great work being done by Labour Councils and Labour Mayors.

This week, we feature:

• Wolverhampton City Learning Quarter now complete
• The Gillingham Taskforce gets to work
• Demolition starts in the regeneration of Prestwich village
• £102,000 illegal tobacco uncovered in Barking & Dagenham raid
• Cardiff’s Catherine Gardens play area re-opens after upgrade
• E-scooters start in Brighton & Hove
• North East Mayor and Homes England launch joint delivery unit

Please send news from your council to Paul Dimoldenberg at mail@labourlist.org.

Wolverhampton: City Learning Quarter now complete

Wolverhampton’s £61m City Learning Quarter is now complete following the completion of improvement works to the city’s Central Library and Adult Education building, the final phase of a major regeneration project in the heart of the city centre. The works have transformed the Grade II*-listed Central Library through extensive heritage restoration, including roof replacement, renewed leadwork and like-for-like copper replacement of the main spire and matching domes. The interior has been renovated with new flooring, shelving and furniture as well as a new rear entrance lobby and remodelled extension space.

The neighbouring Adult Education Wolverhampton building on Old Hall Street has been internally remodelled to create more flexible classroom space, a new teaching kitchen and a two-storey glazed link building connecting it directly to the library’s 1930s extension. Together with the new college campus that opened to students in November 2025, the completed quarter provides a modernised, digitally enabled hub for education and skills in Wolverhampton city centre. Future public realm works are planned to connect the rear of the facilities with the nearby St George’s development. The £61m scheme was funded by the Labour council alongside £49m in Government funding, with additional contributions from government grants and the college.

Gillingham: The Gillingham Taskforce gets to work

The Gillingham Taskforce, led by MP for Gillingham and Rainham, Naushabah Khan, includes representation from Gillingham North, Gillingham South and Watling wards. In addition, the Taskforce also comprises officers from Kent Police and Labour Medway Council services, with the aim of making the town centre a better place to live, work, learn and visit.

• A safer high street – The team has installed eight new CCTV cameras in the high street and started an ANPR camera trial, extending parking restrictions in the pedestrianised high street from 6:30pm to midnight, with fines being issued to any offenders.
• Better housing decisions – An Article 4 Direction within Gillingham North, Gillingham South and Watling wards has been issued to place tighter local restrictions on Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs). This ensures that changes of use from single dwelling houses to small-scale HMOs now require planning permission.
• A cleaner high street  – £100,000 worth of council funding to improve street cleaning in both Gillingham and Chatham High Street.
• Tackling anti-social behaviour – Since 1 January 2026, there has been an increased police presence in the high street to tackle anti-social behaviour. Police officers have spent nearly 1,000 hours in Gillingham High Street.

Bury: Demolition starts in the £100m regeneration of Prestwich village

Having served Prestwich for more than 60 years, the Longfield Centre will now be demolished to pave the way for the next stage of regeneration and the long-term transformation of Prestwich village by Prestwich Regeneration LLP, a joint venture between Labour Bury Council and Muse, its private sector partner. Initial preparatory works have already been completed ahead of the Longfield Centre demolition programme, which will begin with the internal strip-out of the retail units and the main Longfield Centre building.

Since the outline plans were approved in July 2024, the masterplan has been further refined. The current plan proposes to deliver 248 build-to-rent apartments, a market hall with space for 13 independent food, drink and retail operators, an enlarged village square, a new retail and community hub featuring a new library, and green spaces at the heart of Prestwich.

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Barking and Dagenham: £102,000 illegal tobacco uncovered in Trading Standards operation

More than 113,000 illicit cigarette sticks with an estimated street value of over £102,000 have been seized in one of the largest illegal tobacco hauls ever uncovered in Barking and Dagenham. The seizure was made during a major multi-agency operation led by Labour Barking and Dagenham Council’s Trading Standards team, following weeks of intelligence gathering and evidence-led investigations.

Officers, supported by a specialist tobacco detection dog, the Metropolitan Police and the council’s Private Sector Housing team, uncovered hidden stockpiles of illegal cigarettes in storage accommodation above commercial premises. Officers recovered more than 113,000 cigarette sticks concealed beneath makeshift beds, inside suitcases, supermarket carrier bags and storage boxes in an apparent attempt to avoid detection. Investigators also seized evidence linking the premises to a number of other shops across the borough, suggesting the existence of a wider illicit tobacco supply network. Illegal tobacco harms communities by undercutting legitimate businesses, making cheap tobacco more readily available, depriving the public purse of tax revenue and helping to fund organised criminal activity. Trading Standards officers are now continuing their investigation.

Cardiff: Catherine Gardens play area reopens after upgrade

Catherine Gardens play area in Rumney is one of the latest in Cardiff to benefit from an upgrade by Labour Cardiff County Council and has now been reopened to the public following a refurbishment that includes the city’s longest slide. Local children and families can now enjoy a wide range of ‘medieval’-themed play equipment, including new swings, a springer, a ‘castle’ multi-unit, ‘dragon’ slide and climbing kart. The project has also delivered upgraded steps, handrails and safety surfacing, as well as an improved seating area, creating a more welcoming and accessible space for the community.

This investment is part of the Labour Council’s ongoing work to improve play spaces across Cardiff, helping to create healthy, active communities and giving children safe, imaginative places to play.

Brighton: E-scooters start in Brighton & Hove

The first e-scooters of a regulated, citywide trial are now available to hire in Brighton & Hove. Initially, 100 Beryl e-scooters will be available at 20 phase-one hubs with dedicated racks installed along the seafront, in the city centre and at both Brighton and Hove railway stations, with the rollout continuing over the summer. By the end of phase 2, 300 e-scooters will be available to hire from 34 hubs across the city. In phase 3, at least 18 more sites will be consulted on.

The scheme includes several no-go and go-slow zones, and weekday night-time and weekend curfews. The launch means Brighton & Hove joins more than 50 towns and cities across the UK currently running e-scooter trials. The use of private e-scooters remains illegal. Residents, commuters and visitors can hire an e-scooter using the Beryl app. While it’s not a legal requirement to use one, users will also be incentivised to wear helmets through an online retailer discount and signposted guidance on quality.

North East: North East Mayor and Homes England launch joint delivery unit

North East Labour Mayor Kim McGuinness and Homes England have launched a joint delivery unit to focus on unlocking complex development sites and speeding up the delivery of major schemes. The Major Projects Delivery Unit will provide shared project oversight, specialist expertise and coordinated delivery support to bring forward housing and regeneration projects more quickly. A key focus of the partnership will be unlocking brownfield land for development, alongside accelerating progress across the region’s three Mayoral Development Zones (Newcastle and Gateshead, Sunderland and Durham).

The initiative is intended to support increased housebuilding, including the delivery of more affordable and social housing, while driving economic growth and job creation. By pooling resources and expertise, the partners aim to bring forward major projects at pace, supporting the North East’s wider ambitions for housing growth and long-term regeneration.

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Start with the local 

Burnham’s politics is rooted in place: Greater Manchester, devolution and the belief that decisions should be made closer to the people affected by them. 

Campaign Lab’s work keeps finding evidence for the campaigning equivalent of this. 

We’ve studied thousands of conversations in local online communities. Again and again, we find that people’s political worlds are intensely local. In our research into more than 1,000 local Facebook groups, local news was shared around five times more than national news. People talk about buses, parking, crime, GP appointments, their high street and what their council or MP is actually doing. 

In our 2024 election experiments, ads featuring local candidates consistently outperformed ones featuring the party leader. In another experiment, 92% of scans of a  QR code about a school petition came from within 400 metres of the site. The closer politics gets to people’s actual lives, the more interesting things become. 

Our work with MPs’ offices points in the same direction. People value representatives who are visible, responsive and connected to their place. 

Yet our campaigning infrastructure is often designed in the opposite direction: create a national message, centrally produce the assets and distribute them downwards. 

A politics of place needs campaigning tools and practices that start locally too. We need to build tactics and processes that help MPs, councillors and activists listen to their communities and respond to what actually matters there.

Treat relationships as political infrastructure 

Watch Burnham campaign content and another thing stands out: other people are everywhere. 

On a recent visit to Cardiff, he simply sat down in the middle of the city centre and talked to people. His videos frequently involve conversations and encounters rather than a politician delivering a monologue perfectly to camera.

That matters because trust is relational. Trust is becoming the meta-commodity every modern politician needs to build: trust that you understand my life, that you listen, that you will tell me what you think and, crucially, that you might actually do something. 

People don’t experience politics only through politicians. They experience it through friends, neighbours, community figures, campaigners and the people they see doing things around them. Our own research increasingly points in this direction too: personal forms of outreach and direct candidate contact show promise in creating lasting persuasive effects. 

Progressive campaigning has become extremely sophisticated at broadcasting at people. The next generation of campaigning needs to become much better at creating relationships between them. 

Similarly, in a world awash with endless AI content and increasing misinformation,  building trusted messengers across our politics becomes all the more important. 

Understand that new mediums create new politics 

Burnham also takes new communications mediums seriously. 

One of the best examples of this is his response to a video that went viral when a woman had booked to get married at the new Number 10 North and was jokingly complaining that Andy Burnham creating Number 10 North might make her big day difficult with all the security. Burnham responded, she then invited him to her wedding, and then Burnham sent her a message for her wedding day. The story of this interaction generated several viral TikToks. 

It wasn’t a policy announcement. It was local, funny, human, and made for the medium.  More importantly, the content provides a definition of who Andy Burnham actually is through a decision and a moment he created. Often politicians can struggle if people can’t recall the smaller stories that give them a sense of who someone actually is.  

His wider willingness to prioritise his own video channels and challenge some of the conventions around traditional press access comes from the same instinct. TikTok isn’t simply another place to upload a television clip. New mediums have their own language, characters and rules. Progressives need to learn them. 

Attention has moved towards creators, podcasts, group chats and short-form video. At Campaign Lab’s Campaign Fringe in Liverpool, our Beyond the Algorithm session, featuring contributions from MP Gordon McKee and Andy Twelves, asks what it takes to build authentic voices people actually trust in that new landscape.

Remember that campaigning changes what is possible 

Finally, Burnham’s politics has been shaped by campaigns themselves, perhaps most obviously Hillsborough and the long struggle to force institutions to confront injustice.

At our first ever Campaign Fringe back in 2024, we ran a session called Wrestling Justice From the State: Using Public Inquiries to Uncover the Truth and Campaign for Change, bringing together Hillsborough Law campaigners and Covid-19 Bereaved Families for  Justice UK. 

These campaigns are reminders that politics isn’t simply something done by politicians.  People organise. They tell stories. They build relationships. They apply pressure. They keep going when institutions would prefer them to stop. Eventually, they can change what the state considers possible. They represent something fundamental about politics: that it is not done to people but by people together. Because campaigning isn’t external to governing. Done well, it creates the pressure, permission and possibilities that allow politicians to act. 

That, perhaps, is the campaigning practice most suited to this political moment: rooted in place, built through relationships, fluent in new mediums and relentlessly focused on doing things.

On September 28, we’re once again bringing people doing exactly that together in Liverpool for the 2026 Campaign Fringe to share what they’re learning, try new tools and techniques, and build relationships across the campaigning community. 

Because a new politics isn’t just about policies. It will also need new campaigning practices to go with it. 

This year will also be the first ever Campaign Fringe Awards. If you have a campaign you’d like to nominate, you can submit a short form here.

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Walk down almost any British high street and you can understand why voters want change. Shops have closed and services have moved online over the last decade. For many people, high street decline is a visible symbol of something bigger: a feeling that they are being overlooked and left behind. 

Our new Prime Minister has committed to make change felt in every postcode. His early days in office signal he understands that while governments can publish strategies, pass legislation and announce investment, ultimately voters judge success differently.

Why high streets matter 

Andy Burnham’s focus on high street renewal matters. If the Prime Minister and his ministers’ promise of change is to mean something, people need to be able to see and feel that change where they live. August has seen several announcements from the new government about high street renewal, with policies to support the retail sector – business rates relief for pubs, social clubs and music venues in England alongside new powers for councils to manage the increasing number of vape and betting shops.

Any serious plan for high streets must recognise the role of an institution which never left: the Post Office. While much has changed, each week, over ten million people still use their local post office to collect parcels, withdraw cash or pay bills. With more than 11,500 branches across all four nations, we remain one of the few organisations with a physical presence in every part of the UK. 

And that is why in the government’s forthcoming High Streets Strategy, ministers should recognise post offices for what they are: independent businesses that keep high streets busy, support local spending and provide access to essential services. Unlike pubs, clubs and live music venues, post offices are not currently included in the plan to cut business rates bills in England next year, despite the vital social value they deliver in community life, valued at nearly £4 billion across the UK annually. 

Extending rates relief to post offices across all four nations would offset the expected £29 million rise which post offices are forecast to pay annually – a figure which disproportionately falls on smaller and rural branches. Cutting business rates for post offices would directly benefit the small business owners who run them.

Transforming Post Office and investing in communities 

Alongside government, business has a role to play in investing in high streets too. At Post Office, we need to deliver that modern retail experience which our customers expect.

That’s why we are investing £120 million over four years to modernise and improve the customer experience in post offices, with new signage, improved branch layouts and better self-service options to reduce queues and simplify operations. My hope is that this investment in our branches boosts a sense of pride in the local area and demonstrates the Post Office’s long-term commitment to UK high streets.

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Post Office Plus 

Post Office has been serving Britain’s towns, cities and villages for generations. With the right conditions, we intend to play an even greater role in daily life in the years ahead. 

This summer, we have renewed our commitment to the UK high street with our new Post Office Plus model. The idea is straightforward. At a time when more services are moving online, many people still want face-to-face support for important life decisions. 

Our research found that around half of consumers would be likely to use services such as digital skills training, energy-switching support and will-writing guidance if those services were available in person in their local area. To meet that demand and help with the cost of living for our customers, we have partnered with Utility Warehouse, Octopus Legacy, and Good Things Foundation, who each bring specialist support in these areas, with the ambition to onboard government partners soon too.

At our first locations in Barnsley and Derby, the Post Office branches have been transformed into community hubs, bringing in our partners on different days of the week to provide guidance for customers during important life moments. The Post Office Plus model makes it easier to access services in a familiar, trusted high street location.   

We are rolling out more locations across the UK this year as part of the pilot. As the government looks at how to deliver change in the years ahead, ministers should consider how they can use networks like Post Office’s to make change felt on the high street and support people with the cost of living challenges, including by hosting a range of government support and services in these locations.

Time to deliver 

As the House returns and we head into conference season, the government will be thinking about the next three years in the lead up to the general election. The first years of this government have been about setting direction. Now they must make that change feel real to voters.

Post Office faces a similar moment. In 2025, we launched our own plan to transform the organisation by 2030 into a modern, sustainable business. We have laid the foundations and now we must deliver.  Plans and strategies matter, but people ultimately judge success by what they see in their daily lives.

If the Prime Minister is to make good his promise of change, it must be visible on the high street. Busy local businesses and accessible services make communities feel more connected and optimistic about the future. 

With our new Post Office Plus model and £120 million investment to modernise branches, our ambition is to have a thriving post office for every community – supporting growth and opportunity on high streets across the UK.

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At its 2006 Conference, the party presented a video celebrating its “50 Reasons to be Proud of Labour”, including the declaration: “We’ve banned fox hunting.” It subsequently listed “Banned fox hunting” as number 35 in its top 50 achievements since 1997.

The Hunting Act 2004 was the culmination of years of campaigning and parliamentary battles and represented a significant victory for animals and for the principle that cruelty should not be justified as sport. But there is an important qualification. The Act prohibited hunting with dogs but also contained a series of exemptions and has proved difficult to enforce. Twenty years on, hunting hasn’t disappeared. Instead, hunts have adapted their practices and sought to exploit weaknesses in the legislation.

That leaves today’s government with an opportunity both practical and political: to strengthen the law so that the ban works as intended. If it is to do that, it needs to act sooner rather than later.

Why the Hunting Act needs strengthening

Trail hunting emerged after the Act as a purported alternative to hunting wild mammals, in which hounds follow a pre-laid animal-based scent. It provides a cover for illegal hunting. Even were an animal-based scent really laid, it would clearly risk dogs finding and pursuing the scent of live wild mammals. 

The government’s 2024 manifesto committed to banning trail hunting, and it reiterated that commitment in its Animal Welfare Strategy. A consultation on how the ban should work closed in June this year.

That consultation also asked whether other legislative changes would be needed to make prohibition effective. The League Against Cruel Sports argued that banning trail hunting in isolation risks leaving many of the weaknesses in the Hunting Act untouched. If the legislation remains difficult to enforce, or if exemptions can be used to provide cover for hunting, there is a danger that the practice once again simply changes its name or method.

The League’s recommendations therefore include strengthening the law around reckless or so-called accidental hunting, requiring those organising hunts to take reasonable steps to prevent wild mammals being chased or killed, and addressing the responsibilities of landowners and those responsible for dogs. There is also a need to remove exemptions which can be exploited, expanding the definition of hunting to include searching for a wild mammal, and more robust penalties. 

This may sound technical, but it comes down to a simple question: does the law prevent the activity Parliament intended to prohibit? At present, there are too many ways for hunts to argue that what they are doing is something other than hunting.

Labour’s unfinished business

In its 1997 manifesto, Labour promised a free vote on whether hunting with hounds should be banned. The Commons subsequently voted repeatedly for prohibition. By 2001, the manifesto acknowledged that the Commons had made its position clear and promised to give the new Parliament an early opportunity to express its view and to “enable [it] to reach a conclusion” on the issue.

In September 2004, 318 Labour MPs voted for the Hunting Bill, with just three voting against. Resistance in the Lords ultimately led to the Parliament Acts being used to secure passage. 

Determination is once again the order of the day.

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The problem isn’t just fox hunting

The government should resist treating trail hunting as a self-contained problem.

Exemptions in the Act are being used in relation to a range of animals, including foxes, deer, hares and mink. In the case of deer claims relating to activities such as research, observation or rescuing wild mammals provide routes around the prohibition. 

Stag hunting remains a stark example. Hunts continue to chase deer with hounds in the South West. This should make us cautious about assuming that a new prohibition on trail hunting, by itself, will solve the wider problem.

The lesson is that legislation needs to anticipate how those determined to continue hunting will try to operate around it.

The government has a chance to do something more valuable than simply delivering one manifesto commitment. It can use the legislative opportunity to make the Hunting Act clearer, more comprehensive and more enforceable.

This is not a battle between town and country

The debate must not be framed as if strengthening the Hunting Act means imposing an urban agenda on rural Britain. Polling has repeatedly found majority support for stronger restrictions on hunting among people living in rural areas. Most recently, polling found that 58 percent of rural residents supported banning trail hunting, compared with 28 percent who opposed it.

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The government needs to move quickly

There is a clear thread running through Labour’s history. The question is what happens next.

The government should now publish its consultation response and bring forward legislation as soon as possible. There is good reason for urgency. If Labour wants to deliver its manifesto commitment and strengthen the Hunting Act, it should introduce legislation early enough in this Parliament to give it a realistic opportunity to complete the process. And the legislation should be ambitious enough to solve the problem rather than simply address its most visible symptom.

The Hunting Act was not a failure. It was indeed a major achievement. The problem is that, as with much legislation, the real world has exposed weaknesses that were not fully anticipated when Parliament passed it.

To the question – does this pass the Makerfield test? – the answer is clear. Some 76 percent of voters there support strengthening hunting laws, as do voters up and down the country, including in rural areas.

The government should move now to ban trail hunting and strengthen the wider legislation so that exemptions cannot be used as cover for hunting. It should improve the prospects of effective enforcement and ensure that those who organise and facilitate hunting cannot exploit gaps in the law.

Labour itself once said, proudly, “We’ve banned fox hunting.” Now it should be equally proud to say it made sure the ban actually worked. 

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As part of our Labour Tribes project, in partnership with PLMR, LabourList is taking an in-depth look at the different groups, factions and caucuses that shape the current Parliamentary Labour Party.

While a summer of record-breaking heatwaves and wildfires has renewed public focus on the climate crisis, the Socialist Environment and Resources Association (SERA) has been campaigning for “ecosocialism” for more than 50 years. With almost a quarter of the PLP affiliated to the organisation, the socialist society sees the environmental debate as being more than just about climate policy, but also a matter of social justice too.

As MPs prepare to return to Westminster, LabourList spoke to SERA’s national organiser Laura Clarke about the organisation’s mission, their hopes for Burnham’s premiership, and how climate action can be a vote winner – despite a sceptical media narrative.

‘People across the political spectrum vote for politicians who act on climate’

Since 1953, SERA has campaigned within the Labour Party for greater action on climate change, with its activism, campaigning and policy position being driven by its members.

Clarke said one of the organisation’s key roles is acting as a bridge between Labour’s grassroots, affiliated MPs and the government.

“We advocate from members to government and from government back to members and communities more widely. We really see that as a pivotal role that we need to tell government that this is what people out on the doorstep are thinking about the environment.”

However, she also argues that SERA also serves to communicate Labour’s environmental record more effectively to voters – a message that Clarke argues is a vote winner.

“There is no doubt that Labour is serious about climate – [it’s] the only party that’s serious about climate change and the only one that’s delivered any meaningful policies for climate change.

“I do think there seems to be a gap in what media tells us we all believe and the reality of what polling tells us. The polling consistently shows that people across the political spectrum vote for politicians who act on climate and nature. Yet we are continually bombarded with this idea that we don’t support it and that people don’t want climate action.

“It’s a vote winner. If we are able to articulate that as a Labour movement, we know we can win votes.”

READ MORE: ‘Nature is our first line of defence against climate extremes. Labour must treat it that way’

SERA’s vision of ‘ecosocialism’

For SERA, addressing the climate crisis goes deeper than just reducing carbon emissions. Their vision of ecosocialism envisages a sustainable future, with a pro-environment, socially just agenda at its heart.

Clarke explained: “That’s underpinned by all the evidence that we know that it’s the poorest communities that will be hardest hit by the impacts of climate change and the nature crisis.”

She also argued that environmental policy has a direct bearing on one of the defining political issues for the government: the cost of living.

“The cost of living will increase if we don’t do anything about the climate crisis. This conversation that’s happening at the moment about needing to reduce the cost of living we completely support – but we have to appreciate that you need to tackle climate change, otherwise everything is going to continue to escalate.

“Nature is important for the health and well-being of people, for liveable communities, for climate resilience and adaptation, and for food security. Nature is just so critical.”

‘It simply wasn’t true that nature’s a blocker’

One area SERA found itself butting heads with the government was over planning reform – in particular the decision to roll back protections for nature to boost housing developments, accusing Starmer’s administration of “divisive rhetoric”.

Clarke said: “It simply wasn’t true that nature’s a blocker. When you look at all the different issues around planning, nature was an easy target. In our minds, the stats don’t stack up in that regard. We feel like nature lost out.”

Some Labour MPs did campaign for protections for nature when the Planning and Infrastructure Bill made its way through Parliament, notably North East Hertfordshire MP Chris Hinchliff. His campaign to protect rare chalk streams in law saw him branded a NIMBY on social media and temporarily suspended from the party.

For Clarke, their support for protecting nature does not equate to opposition to new housing developments.

“We know we need housing, so we’re not against housing. It’s possible to deliver housing and actually improve the nature that was near or around that existing area.”

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Burnham and calls for public ownership of water

While SERA’s relationship with Andy Burnham’s government is still at an early stage, Clarke said she was encouraged by the signals received so far.

“Andy Burnham and his government have talked about a change of approach and being inclusive and non-factional, and that seems to be the case.

“Prior to the leadership contest, he wrote a statement to us that we really support on the environment, nature and climate. Because the socialist societies do play a unique role in the Labour Party, it’s nice to feel like our Prime Minister respects that.”

One area SERA is looking to push the government is on water reform, with members expressing concern at a “lack of urgency”. The organisation has teamed up with Mainstream to create a motion for party conference calling for the public ownership of water.

Clarke welcomed Burnham’s commitment to the “public control” of utilities, including water, and said: “Andy is giving out signals that everything could move in that way, so we want to ensure that he knows he’s supported.”

‘The economics behind Rosebank don’t seem to stack up’

The question over the controversial exploitation of Rosebank could be a potential source of friction between Burnham and SERA, however, after saying last month he would be “pragmatic” about oil and gas.

Clarke was adamant that Rosebank should not be given the green light and disputed the economic case for the project, along with the environmental damage it would cause.

“Not only could it emit 70 percent of Britain’s annual emissions [over the project’s lifetime], it could have an excess death rate of 57,400 [by 2100] because of the heatwaves associated with more emissions.

“When you look at the economics behind it, it doesn’t seem to stack up. We won’t have access to the oil and gas it will produce – it will go to the international market. It won’t reduce the cost of living, and in relation to the amount of jobs that it would produce, they are overstated.”

While SERA supports a “just transition” for communities affected by the decline of North Sea oil and gas, Clarke stressed that did not mean that Rosebank has to be a part of that process.

READ MORE: ‘Working class communities deserve a bold climate plan from Labour’

‘Labour should continue to be on the right side of the science’

Recent extreme weather events have prompted more of SERA’s almost 100 affiliated MPs to become more involved with the organisation, particularly ahead of party conference.

Clarke said that she also expects SERA’s membership and the political pressure for action on climate to grow as climate change becomes increasingly tangible in people’s lives.

She reflected on living for more than a decade in Australia before returning to Britain last year, pointing to the extreme bushfires in 2019 and 2020 as an example of how extreme climatic events can leave a lasting political impression.

“The Labor government there got elected in a significant part on an environmental platform, which was based on those wildfires, which were all emblazoned on our memories. You can’t forget things like that.”

As Britain begins to bear the brunt of more extreme weather, Clarke expects similar experiences to shape British public opinion as people increasingly encounter the effects of climate change themselves.

“That is lived trauma. I think we will begin to see a change and there will become more demand for action.”

Ultimately, Clarke argues, Labour has had a good track record for climate action – and urged the government not to waver in that commitment.

“What is clear is that Labour has continually shown itself to be on the right side of the science. That’s what we are asking for now – to continue to be on the right side of the science.

“When increasingly we’re feeling those climate change impacts, we just need Labour to continue to do what it’s always done.”

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The post Inside SERA: Labour’s environmentalists see climate action as a ‘vote winner’ appeared first on LabourList.

Let’s reflect upon some of the human consequences, as this summer through five heat-waves, whole families including almost 200,000 children were often jammed in one room with nowhere to play, sharing kitchen, bathroom and toilet facilities. This is the state of much so-called ‘temporary accomodation.’Appalling, wretched, stressful, unhealthy, inhumane conditions, with no end in sight.

An utterly shameful Tory legacy which is now our responsibility to fix.

There are political consequences across whole communities as economic deprivation and prolonged insecurity engender anger and alienation – the breeding ground for populism, hate and division. Also, failure costs.

READ MORE: ‘Spirit of ’45 – social housing at scale’

We need thousands of Council/ Social Rent homes. Andy Burnham – our new Prime Minister – wants Council Houses as a priority alongside his top priority-ending homelessness.

The Treasury allocated £39 billion for 1.5 million houses over 5 years, plus recently, funding targeting homelessness. So, why don’t we get on with it?

Well some are already doing great work,’green shoots’ are visible. 

The problem, however, is one of scale. As indicated above, thousands and thousands are needed and in short order.

Sadly the national picture is that building council houses is grinding to a halt. Clearly, not helped by growing evidence of an impasse with big private developers. Plus, there is also the major problem of significant traditional building skill shortages. 

The Impasse 

Building genuinely affordable homes, especially socially rented housing, has become stalled as ‘unviable’ (i.e. not sufficiently profitable) to major private developers. Unviable is always the developers excuse for not delivering promised affordable housing and/or infrastructure.

Last autumn Sky News reported that since the election, 275,000 homes have been delivered, compared to the 400,000 needed to be on track for 1.5 million homes.

Rising building costs and weakening house prices left “half of the country unviable (for development projects) and the other half of the country unaffordable” said Steve Turner, Executive Director, Home Builders Federation (HBF).

In June the Guardian highlighted the flatlining of Social Housing completions and growing need, saying ‘Research shows …it would take more than a century to clear the social housing waiting lists in England at the government’s current speed of delivering new social homes”

Meanwhile, just weeks ago The Independent reported surging profit warnings among housebuilders. 

The writing ‘is on the wall’: If we continue to rely so heavily on the big private developers, they will ask for a massive public subsidy to proceed – that is, assuming they can get the workforce. 

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But, is this the effective way forward, or is it now time for government to embrace a broader approach?

Now must be the time for unlocking the huge potential of SME’s across the UK currently manufacturing Modular Passivhaus dwellings – modern, high quality, high tech, energy efficient prefabs? 

Also, the government, via The National Housing Bank, should be making significant investment, via newly devolved mayoralties and unitary authorities into setting up publicly, community and co-operatively owned factories.

Factories for manufacturing and assembling genuinely affordable homes to rent and buy in the postcodes where they are most needed. Which, incidentally, would bypass many of the traditional building skills shortages.

Can it Be Done? 

Well,have done it before, and successfully, when Attlee and Bevan created a ‘prefabs’ revolution in the austere aftermath of WW2. Since then there have been huge advances in relevant technology, and funding is already set aside and waiting to be allocated.

We now have, in Andy Burnham, a Labour and Co-operative Prime Minister. So this is the opportunity to boldly involve our co-operators and bring those values into the heart of our mission. 

We should, therefore, make at least one of our New Towns a Co-operative (Friendly) New Town.

Learn from the national and international success of Co-operative Housing Projects.

It is probable that many readers of this article, myself included, are not currently experiencing severe housing need. However, we do not join the labour movement to ‘pull up the ladder’ and betray those most in housing need. This is a matter of social conscience not confined to our ideology. It also makes economic and political sense to act now.

We must bring on a second prefab revolution and get essential quality energy efficient Council Homes manufactured and assembled in every postcode across the UK.

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There is a real problem with campaigning for proportional representation. I am certainly in favour of electoral reform. In many parts of the country, a particular party is way above favoured in a particular area and first-past-the-post may mean all the seats in the area are won by that party. This leads to one-party rule and total unaccountability and corruption.

For the GLA elections in London, we have a top-up list and the single transferable vote system. I think that works well and I would like a similar system for general and council elections. But unfortunately there are so many different forms of PR that no one can agree on which system. Political parties will simply want the system which will benefit them the most. Remember we had a referendum on the alternative vote system and Labour and the Tories campaigned against.  I note that the Tories simply abolished STV in London and Labour has reversed that decision. The Tories kept the list system and, to its credit, Labour has not changed it. In Harrow many years ago we had an aldermanic list system that meant that there were some Labour representatives on the council.

I remember in Australia, polls suggested a majority wanted to end the UK monarch being head of state, but voted against it because no one could agree on what the replacement should be.

There are so many different sorts of PR that it is almost impossible to come to a cross-party consensus. I think Labour could just change the system along the lines we already have.

Bill Stephenson

I am personally not happy about private water companies retaining the ownership of the British water in this country. This is not a financial commodity that can be owned by private companies like Thames Water. These private water companies should be held to ransom for abusing the financial control of what is basically a natural resource for not just the public, but also the natural world in terms of aquatic species of wild plants and animals which need fresh unpolluted water to survive.

The problem is that Thames Water have total monopoly over a large area of supplying water to its paying customers they have total autonomy with no competition and they basically are doing exactly what they want and do not have anyone to answer to, not even the elected government.

Susan Ann Mead

With a majority Labour government, there is no constitutional requirement for a mid-term election. As time passes, the lies, bluff, hatred to secure votes and false solutions to the boat crisis and housing crisis will be progressively exposed, and voters will drift away.

Also, full term’s improvement will demonstrate Labour as the party doing maximum good to the majority of working people and with viable plans for improvement.

Unrealistic plans attract votes only on a short term. Labour should continue development plans unabated, expose the futile opposition with time, and hold the next general election in 2029 when it is due.

Basudeb Ghose

Well, Andy Burnham certainly talks the talk, but does he walk the walk? The jury is certainly out on the latter.

Burnham has provided the narrative and communication strategy so sorely lacking during the Starmer years, but what about delivery? Early days, but as everyone sheltered from the heat, Burnham seems set to allow drilling in the North Sea – fiddling while Rome burns hardly covers it.

Water shortages are becoming a daily reality. The private water estate is clearly not fit for purpose. Bosses filling their boots as well as those of shareholders. Hosepipe bans, whilst destructive water-reliant data centres get approval. If ever there was a key sector, where Burnham can roll back 40 years of mismanagement, water is it – yet he seems to have shied away of re-nationalising.

Big ideas on social care, yet no plan seemingly to wrestle the service away from the private sector. No sign either of an economically literate and humane immigration policy. The care sector is one crying out for staff it cannot get due to Shabana Mahmoud’s draconian immigration policies.

If you want growth amid an ageing population, migrant workers have to be allowed in to cover skills gaps and much else. A policy simply based on reducing numbers may please Reform and it’s supporters but it is economically illiterate.

Finally, the way in which the early prison releases program was dealt with smacked of populism, bending to vengeance-based campaigns, amplified by the right-wing media. Releases should be by individual assessment, not according to how many column inches or minutes on the news that victims and their relatives can attain.

There have been positives, such as the moves to address the cost of living crisis and bringing some harmony to the Labour Party.

Early days, but worrying that there is not much sign of real change – a continuation of Reform light policies on immigration and increasingly the environment. But better PR.

Andy Burnham made big promises but now he has to deliver. Just providing better PR will get found out eventually. It is not rolling back the damaging policies of the past 40 years!

So be bold, take water back into public ownership, ban anymore drilling in the North Sea, double down on net zero, bring in a humane and economically literate immigration policy, look seriously at universal basic income and stop pandering to the military industrial complex on defence spending.

Paul Donovan, Wanstead

With a call to implement an arms embargo to help the situation in Gaza to be debated at the Party conference and the need to boost defence spending to help ourselves and Ukraine, isn’t one answer to nationalise the Elbit Systems factories in Bristol and elsewhere, and redirect the arms, in particular drones, for our own use.

Phil Tate, Chester

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The post Letters to the Editor – week ending 30 August 2026 appeared first on LabourList.

I joined the Labour Party.

For me, this wasn’t a decision I took lightly. I have always cared deeply about my community here in Davyhulme, but I reached a point where I felt I couldn’t simply stand on the sidelines and watch politics happen around me. I needed to get involved.

Part of that feeling came from what happened locally to me. Reform took a council seat from Labour, in my area, by only 11 votes, and subsequently that councillor was arrested in connection with an allegation of carrying a dangerous weapon. I found the situation deeply upsetting.

Whatever someone’s political allegiance, I believe people who represent our communities should understand the responsibility that comes with holding public office.

It made me think very seriously about the direction I wanted to see for my own area and I decided I needed to step up. I wanted to fight for Labour locally, but more importantly, I wanted to do something positive for the community I live in.

Since joining, everything has moved rather quickly. I received a lovely welcome email from the Head of the Council, who introduced me to the two Labour councillors representing my area of Davyhulme here in Urmston, Trafford. That immediately made the experience feel very personal. I wasn’t simply becoming a membership number. I was being welcomed into a local organisation with people who are already working every day on behalf of our community.

WATCH: New LabourList Podcast – NEC Election Special

Then came my first ever canvassing session. I joined the Urmston Labour councillors and went out around Urmston, knocking on doors and speaking to residents and I absolutely loved it. What struck me most was that canvassing isn’t simply about asking people for their vote. It’s about listening.

Residents talked to us about potholes, overhanging trees and anti-social behaviour, including concerns about young people using scooters and e-bikes.

These might sound like relatively small issues when discussed from a distance, but when you’re standing on someone’s doorstep and listening to them explain how something affects their street and their daily life, you realise how important these issues actually are.

One thing became particularly clear to me. Our councils need the resources to deal with these problems.

It is very easy to criticise a council because a pothole hasn’t been repaired or a street hasn’t received the attention residents feel it deserves.

But where is the money supposed to come from? Local government needs adequate funding from central government. Without it, councils are forced to make incredibly difficult decisions about where limited resources are spent.

Main roads can understandably receive priority, while smaller residential streets can sometimes feel neglected.

More funding for local government could make a genuine difference to people’s everyday lives.Better roads. Better maintained streets. More responsive services. More capacity to tackle anti-social behaviour and support communities.

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Perhaps the biggest thing I have learned already is that politics is about people. It isn’t just Westminster or Parliament or just political arguments on television and social media. Politics is also the person who opens their front door and tells you about the pothole outside their house. It’s the resident worried about trees becoming dangerous and the parent concerned about anti-social behaviour, the person who simply wants their street to feel safe and looked after. That is the politics I want to be involved in.

I have only been a Labour member for a very short time, but already I feel that joining was the right decision.

I want to learn, to listen, to work and most of all I want to fight for my community.

I don’t pretend to have all the answers. I’m only at the very beginning of this journey. But I do know that sitting back wasn’t going to change anything. So I stepped up. I joined Labour and went canvassing. I listened to residents and I intend to keep going. I’ve only just started my journey into politics, and I’m already loving it.

Davyhulme, is my community and I want to help make it stronger. And I’m ready to play my part.

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