An Guardian exclusive extract from Taken as Red: How Labour Won Big and the Tories Crashed the Party by Anushka Asthana, sheds light on the internal struggles within the Labour Party during Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership and the efforts of party moderates to reclaim control. The book reveals how Corbyn’s iconic appearance at Glastonbury in 2017 became a turning point, not only for his leadership but also for those within Labour who sought to steer the party away from the hard-left policies associated with Corbynism.
The Glastonbury Moment: A Turning Point for Corbyn
In June 2017, Corbyn stood before a rapturous crowd at Glastonbury’s Pyramid stage. His speech, filled with anti-elite rhetoric and punctuated with a quote from Shelley’s The Masque of Anarchy, resonated deeply with the festival-goers. Chants of “Ohh Jeremy Corbyn!” echoed across the fields as Corbyn waved to tens of thousands of adoring supporters, cementing his status as a political icon for the left.
But while Corbyn basked in the adulation of the crowd, a very different mood was taking hold within the party’s moderate factions. As the Labour leader celebrated his growing popularity, Morgan McSweeney, a key Labour strategist, sat on a park bench in south London contemplating what Corbyn’s surge meant for the future of the party. McSweeney, who despised Corbyn’s politics, saw this as the leader’s “Icarus moment.” While Corbyn was flying high with a devoted base, McSweeney believed he had flown too close to the sun, captivated by an audience that was far from representative of the wider electorate.
Labour Together: A Plan to Defeat Corbynism
McSweeney was part of a group known as Labour Together, a coalition of moderates working to wrest the party away from Corbyn’s left-wing grip. They were not focused on staging an internal coup to remove Corbyn from leadership; they accepted that Corbyn’s position was secure after he defied expectations in the 2017 general election, where he stripped Theresa May of her majority and won 40% of the vote. Instead, Labour Together focused on building a post-Corbyn future, ensuring that when the time came, the party would be ready to move away from Corbynism and present a more centrist and ‘electable face’ to the public.
The group was financially backed by prominent donors like Trevor Chinn and Martin Taylor, who were eager to support the party’s renewal. Their efforts were also implicitly endorsed by Labour’s deputy leader at the time, Tom Watson, who recognised the need for a moderate faction to balance the growing influence of the hard-left. Watson’s backing helped Labour Together gain credibility with donors and bring in MPs supportive of their cause.
Operation Red Shield and the Push for Party Renewal
Labour Together’s strategy was clear: protect moderate MPs from being ousted by hard-left activists, build a policy platform that could appeal to the wider electorate, and position the party to win future elections without relying on Corbyn’s grassroots base. McSweeney referred to the effort as “Operation Red Shield,” a defensive move to protect the party’s moderate wing from accusations of disloyalty and prepare for the inevitable leadership battle that would come after Corbyn.
One of their key focuses was to counteract the influence of Corbyn-supporting media outlets like The Canary, which had grown in popularity among Corbyn’s base. McSweeney was concerned that such platforms were shaping the narrative in ways that could harm Labour’s future prospects. Labour Together initiated a “Stop funding fake news” campaign, which targeted advertisers on these alt-left and alt-right platforms, resulting in financial damage to The Canary and a decrease in its readership.
Challenges and Setbacks
Labour Together did not have a smooth path. Early on, the group was fined by the Electoral Commission for failing to declare £730,000 in donations, a misstep that was blamed on “human error.” The group also struggled to connect with some elements of the party’s left wing, with tensions emerging over the best path forward.
Nonetheless, Labour Together pressed on with their mission to find a candidate who could lead the party back to power. McSweeney and his colleagues began looking at potential leaders who could appeal to both the party’s traditional base and the wider electorate. Although Keir Starmer’s name was not openly discussed at the time, he emerged as a leading contender for the moderate faction’s support. Starmer’s calm, forensic approach and his ability to build a broad coalition within the party made him an ideal candidate for those looking to steer Labour away from the hard left.
A Fragile Victory and Lessons for the Future
After Corbyn’s eventual resignation following the 2019 general election defeat, Starmer took over as Labour leader, representing the culmination of Labour Together’s efforts to reclaim the party. However, as the book details, Labour’s victory in the 2024 election was far from secure. Despite a landslide win, the party’s voter coalition remains fragile. Political strategists like McSweeney warn that Labour’s majority could quickly erode if the party fails to rebuild trust with the electorate and maintain a broad, inclusive platform.
In Taken as Red, Asthana highlights how Labour’s path back to power was far from a smooth one, filled with internal battles, strategic missteps, and a delicate balancing act between maintaining Corbyn’s grassroots energy while pivoting to a more centrist, electable platform. The book sheds light on the behind-the-scenes efforts that reshaped the party, revealing the extent to which Labour’s future was crafted by those working quietly in the background to move the party away from its left-wing roots.
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