It is nearly a year since one of the Labour party’s worst ever election defeats; and just over six months since Keir Starmer became its leader. Starmer has acknowledged that his party has a mountain to climb if it is to win the next election, but that is his target. Most opinion surveys suggest he has started well: Labour has drawn level with the Conservatives. This rapid improvement might however be courtesy of the Prime Minister’s uncertain handling of the unprecedented Covid crisis. With a vaccine in the offing, voters might again look favourably on Boris Johnson as Britain returns to something-approaching normality.
Perhaps a better guide to how political parties can recover from a defeat such as Labour’s last December can be gained by looking at how our two main parties responded to earlier electoral reverses? That at any rate is the assumption behind ‘How To Come Back From The Brink’, which is broadcast on Radio 4 later today.
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