Cicero Group was pleased to host an expert panel discussion discussing the state and the future of the UK Labour party.
Taking place on the morning of Tuesday 26 April and chaired by Senior Account Manager Simon Fitzpatrick, the panel was drawn from the worlds of journalism, academia, and polling:
Iain Watson, BBC Political Correspondent and author of Five Million Conversations: How Labour lost an election and rediscovered its roots
Professor Tim Bale, Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University and author of Five Year Mission: The Labour Party under Ed Miliband
Deborah Mattinson, Founding Director of BritainThinks and former polling adviser to the Labour Party
Iain Watson opened the event, discussing his experiences from the 2015 General Election campaign and insights into the leadership issues currently facing the party.
Deborah Mattinson highlighted the insights from her polling and focus groups conducted on behalf of the Labour party. She found that voters recognised aspirational families and figures as people who would benefit from a Conservative government in 2015, while single mothers, people on welfare and immigrants were picked as people more likely to benefit from a Labour government. Additionally, her research found that even in Scotland, Labour’s policies were seen as being identical to the Conservative party’s, but with their leaders being seen as “less competent”.
Professor Tim Bale discussed Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the party and his perceived failings. He argued that Labour would have “no chance” of winning the 2020 General Election, with the polls showing that Labour is failing to capitalise on a Conservative party torn apart by Europe, weakened by an unpopular recent Budget and facing continuing strikes from NHS junior doctors. He noted that Corbyn’s position could be strengthened during the 2016 Labour party conference if he is able to bring through reforms to the party’s structure.
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