On Monday evening, the Strangers’ Bar at Westminster was treated to a rare sight: Angela Rayner looking happy, smiling and holding court. As the newspapers went on the offensive over a new analysis of the Employment Rights Bill, which found it will cost business nearly £5 billion a year, the Deputy Prime Minister went to the Commons watering hole for a wine to celebrate the bill’s second reading.
It’s not just Rayner’s new deal for workers (now titled ‘make work pay’, following intense focus-grouping) that is giving her cause for fresh optimism. She is also enjoying a resurgence inside government after a tricky start. As Boris Johnson once said, ‘There are no disasters, only opportunities. And, indeed, opportunities for fresh disasters.’ While Keir Starmer navigates a route out of a difficult first 100 days and faces personal poll ratings of minus 30, there is a chance for his deputy to benefit.
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