With his collar open and sleeves rolled up, Sir Keir Starmer struck a stark contrast among his Labor colleagues. Photo: Getty/Leon Neal < p>The Shadow Cabinet clearly didn't get the memo.
In rows of seats rising high as if for a school photo, the men on the Labor Party front bench were wearing jackets and tightly knotted over ties. buttons.
This meant that when Sir Keir Starmer eventually took the empty seat on stage next to them, collar open and sleeves rolled up, the contrast was even more stark.
«We didn't know what they were going to wear,» admitted one of the Labor leader's aides, as jokes about a teacher hanging out with children circulated on social media.
But there was nothing unplanned about it. Sir Keir's appearance on stage in Essex on Thursday was effectively the start of his general election campaign.
New Labor is reflected in the six-point promise card and the dazzling production has made headlines. «Blair without flair,» as former Ukip leader Nigel Farage dubbed Sir Keir.
But according to those who had been planning the speech for months, there was something more subtle: an attempt to elevate and clarify Brand Care in the minds of voters.
Election campaigns can be defined by political clashes, creative attacks, or which side has the keenest instincts in the event of unforeseen events.
< img src ="/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/f419c35bebdb418d14f37c8c7f5336de.jpg" />Sir Keir will beat Sir Tony Blair, who has never participated in a televised leadership debate in an election. Photo: Getty/Leon Neal
But to some extent, politicians like to play it down but know they can't avoid a battle of personalities. It's really a race between one of two people who can become prime minister.
Ask Ed Miliband.
As Shadow Environment Minister, responsible for delivering clean energy by 2030. in the Labor government, Miliband was among a select few to speak to Sir Keir on Thursday morning.
And as a former leader of the Labor Party, he bears the scars of the 2015 election race, during which his team made a concerted effort to improving his personal ranking in the polls.
A speech was made in which he criticized his image as a geek, citing how much he looked like Wallace from Wallace and Gromit. During campaign speeches, he constantly used the lectern, even in the garden, to demonstrate authority.
His team knew that never before had the opposition gained ground in polls about which party was most trusted on the economy; and which leader would make the best prime minister.
Miliband's ratings did rise, but in the end he received a cross for each point. It was David Cameron who was re-elected with a surprise majority in the House of Commons.
There is a feeling among Team Keir that there is still work to be done to convey to the public who he is. and what motivates him, as well as the party's political platform.
As we prepare for the prime ministerial election this week, the jacket and the tie remained in place. Photo: Getty/Carl Court
When the Tories — and more recently Lord Kinnock, the former leader of the Labor Party — argue that the public has not yet fallen in love with Sir Keir, the polling data confirms this.
Polls in recent months have found, about half the time, that more respondents disapprove than approve of the Labor leader's job performance. Rishi Sunak's approval ratings are significantly worse. However, this is an area where Labor is keen to improve.
The signs were visible at the presentation near Thurrock. The list of six promises was labeled «my first steps» rather than the party's first steps, next to a photograph of Sir Keir.
On stage, the Labor leader spoke without physical notes (although there were points on the teleprompter in case he became speechless), and he wandered around the stage as he spoke, without a lectern.
Political speeches never came naturally way. Sir Keir, who became an MP only at the age of 52, having spent his legal career away from Westminster.
His internal team has strived over the years to teach him how to relax when answering questions from the press. and how to attack Prime Minister's Questions. The practice sessions took place before this week's speech without comment.
There were more delicate conversations, trying to persuade his boss to talk about his upbringing, as is expected in modern politics, while keeping his family out of the spotlight.
Political experts and allies
Mr Sunak's team are also aware of the importance of personal image in politics, producing some of the most powerful leadership videos ever as the race to succeed Boris Johnson heats up in July 2022.
As for the prime ministerial election itself this week , a speech Monday that put safety and security at the center of his campaign speech, his jacket and tie remained in place.
The backdrop was not sparkling. colleagues, except for the think tank logo on a white screen; Sitting before him in a small room in Westminster were political oddballs and allies among the assembled media.
The 30-minute address warned Britons it was not safe to vote Labor in the election. On Friday, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt ended the week with another dire warning: under Labour, tax will rise “as surely as night follows day”.
There is no doubt that Mr Sunak's frame speech was dwarfed by Sir Keir's more campaign-style event, which featured emotional appeals from voters.
“The Prime Minister has laid out the details,” said one Sunak ally. “He talked about some of the biggest problems we face, like the growing Social Security bill. Starmer didn't mention defense at all.»
Downing Street is preparing fresh attacks on that last point — Labour's failure to deliver on the Tory pledge to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defense by 2030, without giving a time frame instead.
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Away from politics. , there has been quiet debate about Mr Sunak's external image, not least in the context of the charge of «aloofness» leveled by Labour, which is closely linked to his wealth.
Private jet use is declining
Mr Once Number 10 Sunak was happy to publish comments to the press defending his use of private jets whenever The Guardian reported on it. “He is the leader of a G7 country!” they will insist.
In recent weeks, with elections looming on the horizon, the use of private jets for domestic travel appears to have declined, or at least received fewer media reports.
Private citizens are complaining, at least , from the outside One person who heard the Prime Minister say that it would be politically wise to wear Prada shoes less often in public may well have been exposed too.
There has been debate for months over whether Sunak, as Miliband did in 2015, should take personal criticism into account and explain why the theft of his personal wealth was wrong. (The argument the Prime Minister makes when publicly challenged is that Britain is a country that rewards aspiration and should be judged on merit, not money.)
Shadowboxing will continue. it goes on and on — the election could well be another six months if No. 10's hints are correct — but it can't last forever.
TV networks involved in early discussions are expecting at least two televised debates between the two leaders, similar to the 2019 election, although Mr Sunak appears to be publicly pushing for more.
On this matter. At least Sir Keir will beat Sir Tony Blair, who has never appeared in a televised leaders' election debate — it was only introduced in 2010.
'Blair's heir' knows he is his own man, no matter what the ridicule neither were. Getting voters to see exactly who he is is still a work in progress.
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