'But I have to be honest with you...' - Something needs to be done about Labour's messaging before it risks alienating everybody

The timing of this years’ election was unfortunate for Labour in the sense that almost as soon as they entered government, they would enter recess. 

The government would celebrate the fact that Starmer had at least lasted longer than Liz Truss, having spent over 50 days in office. Though even then, despite mostly winning plaudits for the way it handled the far right riots several weeks ago, there was still an unmissable sense that the government was effectively AFK.  

That isn’t a criticism of the government’s timetable either.

Again, as with many things, Labour can thank Rishi Sunak for slotting in the election just before recess knowing the inevitable loss would give Labour little opportunity to proceed quickly with their agenda.

There was talk of how the government sought to shorten recess because it was aware of ‘the task’ that lay ahead for it, and how the optics of immediately going on recess while the country continued on its downward spiral were pretty appalling.  

A lot happened in the first few days of a Labour government, however, that showed signs of some optimism; as it turned out, they appeared to make the most of the unfortunate timetable they were given - as I highlighted previously: 

For this page, much of what Labour did in its first few days was “strange and unusual” - because, strangely, and unusually, it saw a government that actually seemed to function properly, at pace, and, crucially, as a government should. 

It was “strange and unusual” because those engaged in politics enough to notice how little the Conservatives ‘actually’ did during the 14 years they were in government were not used to this. 

We were used to every one of the myriad of permacrisis problems that seemed to infect the Conservative Party as though it was some sort of tick or compulsivity we just grew to live with; as though what we experienced under them for so long was completely normal. 

That sense that it was over on July 5 was jarring. 

Making it weirder was the fact that in its first week, Labour did ‘a thing’. 

In fact -

It didn’t just do ‘a thing’, it did many things to provide reassurance, and the feeling was strange. The nation had likely become so accustomed to being misused and neglected for 14 years that it could scarcely believe the possibility that we might actually have a government that was there to work for us, for a change. Or at least possibly. 

Numerous examples exist of what Labour did prior to recess -