At Labour conference, Reform was the real story
The government's second conference in power showed unity against the far right, but anxiety over delivery and messaging remains.
Nobody I spoke to in Liverpool seemed particularly cheery about Labour’s second party conference since coming to power.
Last year’s gathering was overshadowed by the freebies scandal – a foolish early mistake that set the tone for successive fumbles. This year, delegates carried a more terminal gloom. The government’s first year has been one of drift and missteps; bills continue to rise, and the far right is on the march.
As I made my way between the conference hall and the fringe circuit, the same question kept cropping up: what could Keir Starmer possibly pull out of his bag to make things better?
Maybe it was the late September sunshine glinting off the Mersey, maybe it was Andy Burnham’s clumsy leadership putsch. Either way, by the end of the week delegates felt more buoyant than when they arrived. When Starmer finally took to the stage on Tuesday afternoon, he offered something long overdue: a story of what Britain might look like under a Labour government. The irony was that this vision seemed to emerge only in response to an existential threat. Labour’s true opponent is no longer the Conservatives, but Reform UK – and, for now at least, that was enough to unite the room.
Starmer’s keynote cut through the ritual of policy shopping lists and standing ovations to hammer home a vital point. Britain, he told the hall, faces a choice between “renewal or decline.” It is, he said, a fight “for the soul of our country, every bit as big as rebuilding Britain after the war.” The Tories barely merited a mention. “The Tories – remember them?” Starmer quipped, to a chorus of laughter. His real target was Nigel Farage: “When was the last time you heard Nigel Farage say anything positive about Britain’s future? He can’t. He doesn’t like Britain. Doesn’t believe in Britain.”
In naming Farage so directly, Starmer crystallised what many at conference already sensed: that Labour now regards Reform as the most serious political threat it faces, both electorally and ideologically. Cabinet ministers and MPs echoed the theme throughout the week, painting Reform as the emblem of Britain’s potential unravelling – a populist undoing decades of progress, undermining business confidence and destabilising Labour’s fragile authority.
Beyond the main hall, optimism peeked through the cracks. There was relief that flagship projects like the green energy plan, industrial strategy, planning reform and the long-promised employment rights bill are finally moving. Some brandished these achievements like hard-won trophies. Ministers begged journalists and businesses to “shout louder” about them. Yet it was striking that Starmer rattled through his government’s successes almost as an afterthought, as though embarrassed by his own homework. This still does not feel like a government fully at ease with its achievements, or fully alive to the need for celebration as well as hard truths.
There were moments of fun, too. At the New Statesman drinks reception, Sadiq Khan quipped that it was “great to be in Liverpool,” giving him “the chance to escape Sharia Law for a few days,” nodding to President Trump’s infamous remarks about the London mayor. Evenings were alive with endless drink receptions, Dawn Butler’s legendary Jamaica party, and the occasional chance to watch your favourite cabinet minister murder Oasis on the karaoke.
But underneath the joy sat a gnawing anxiety. Business leaders voiced frustration at Labour’s sluggish pace and muddled messaging. In discussions I chaired – and in late-night conversations over glasses of warm wine – figures from sectors spanning net zero to healthcare admitted that Reform’s rise is spooking them. They can win arguments with industry sceptics, they said, but if Labour refuse to sell the tangible benefits of its policies to the public with clarity or conviction, the game is lost. And it isn’t just about communication; delivery matters too. The challenge is brutally simple: unless Labour can put more money in people’s pockets and bring down bills, Reform’s message will continue to resonate.
Then of course there was Burnham – the Manchester mayor who sat like an elephant in the room all week. His New Statesman interview, widely read as a veiled leadership pitch, raised plenty of eyebrows in Liverpool. But Starmer’s barnstorming speech – particularly his unflinching confrontation with Farage’s nationalism and racism – steadied Labour’s progressive flank. By the week’s end, Burnham’s manoeuvre felt ill-timed, his window closing almost as quickly as it had opened. For now.
For me, the most striking moment came outside the main hall. I chaired a fringe event with Hope Not Hate and 89up on tackling the far right – a packed session, testament to how seriously activists, campaigners and MPs take the threat Reform poses. The conversation was lively, urgent, and at times sobering: building resilience against extremism will outlast any single parliament, but it is a job for all of us.
The truth is that “renewal or decline” is as much a warning to Labour as it is to the country. Beneath the applause lines and the jokes about Tory irrelevance, one anxiety is inescapable: Reform is no passing nuisance. Starmer’s decision to confront Farage head-on was overdue – and welcome. But it will only matter if it is matched by conviction in messaging, substance in policy, and urgency in delivery. This is the fight of the parliament, and for Britain’s soul.
For now, Labour leaves Liverpool not with a reset, but with a reprieve.■
The Lead’s writing in the running for more national awards
We’re delighted to tell you journalist Hannah Fearn, who you regularly see in The Lead, is up for two awards in this year’s Freelance Journalism Awards – as well as Jennifer Sizeland who has also written for us.
Hannah has made the shortlist for best news story for her writing in The Lead about children imprisoned in young offenders’ institutions and care facilities during the pandemic lockdowns.
She’s also shortlisted in the best opinion writer/columnists category for her highlighting of issues with DWP systems.
Jennifer Sizeland’s reporting from Bury on the noxious smells from Pilsworth tip near Bury highlights our commitment to telling stories beyond the Westminster bubble
Well done and good luck to Hannah and Jennifer and it’s more recognition for the reporting and journalism we do at The Lead following The Lead North being crowned as best regional/specialist newsletter in the country at last month’s PressGazette Future of Media Awards.
The Lead is keeping an eye on Reform UK and their fellow travellers. Get in touch on X, Bluesky and Instagram or email ella@thelead.uk with tips and stories. We especially want to hear from readers whose local council is now run by Farage’s followers.
An investigation by Hope Not Hate found that Reform UK national director Adam Bounds, who shared far-right content on a now-deleted X account, tried to recruit members to a “physical resistance group” that would use “gorillas by night tactics” via Telegram.
Reform UK has lost two more councillors, this time in Northumberland, for breaching the party’s rules (although it’s not clear which ones). Berwick North councillor Nicole Brooke and Norham and Islandshire’s Patrick Lambert have been suspended pending a party investigation. That brings the total figure of lost councillors up to 2022 since May 2025.
Reform has also lost its last female branch chair in Wales – Julie Price – who has resigned over “personal reasons”. She is the tenth Reform Wales branch chair to leave her role within the last few months.
Nigel Farage’s warning that “all better really be seeking alternative careers very, very quickly,” has once again fallen flat, with a job listing for West Northamptonshire’s chief executive offering three days of remote work a week, for £200,000 a year.
There has been much furore over the Prime Minister’s branding of Reform’s policy to scrap indefinite leave to remain racist. He has since backtracked, telling the media that Farage and his followers racist, but a YouGov poll suggests the majority of the public disagree. According to the poll, more than four in ten Britons consider the Reform UK party (47 per cent), policies (46 per cent) and voters (43 per cent) to be “generally racist”.
And finally, Reform’s former Wales leader has pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in return for making statements in favour of Russia and pro-Russian media in the European parliament. Farage and his head of policy, Zia Yusuf, claim no allegiance to Gill, but there is plenty of evidence to suggest otherwise. More on this story on Friday as part of our regular The Lead Untangles series. Subscribe now so you don’t miss it.
The Lead Digest
Here at The Lead, we like to consume just as much as we create, which is why we spend a little time each week rounding up our favourite stories, books, podcasts and films to offer our readers a sample of the work that informs our world.
Luke recommends a look at the September 28 edition Will Hayward’s Substack newsletter, which digs into the Caerphilly by-election. He speaks about how Reform UK have gone all-out immigration in their campaigning (which we’re used to) but points out there is hardly an area less affected by immigration. A good read.
Ed has picked the latest Freddie Flintoff series, Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams, on the BBC. It’s uplifting to see how sport (especially cricket) can make such a difference and a reminder not to give up on young people. It’s easy for them to be written off but there’s some great moments in this series as he brings together a group of boys from Liverpool and a group of girls in Blackpool. And it’s not an easy ride.
Ella is delighted to see the legendary Vice global drugs editor Max Daly bring his unique style of crime journalism to Substack. His first post, on the scapegoating of Hollywood’s ‘Ketamine Queen’ in the late Matthew Perry’s death, is a testament to his commitment to confronting media distortion.
Zoë has been extremely busy this week at the Labour Party Conference. She did have a brilliant article published in the New World, though, which through compelling interviews and striking statistics tells the story of a generation trapped by circumstances.
Finally, Padraig recommends James Bloodworth’s latest Substack article on the myth of the ‘woke’ right, a term that has been doing the rounds in recent weeks. And, since its National Poetry Day, the best poem of all time.
At The Lead we have dedicated journalists and titles in Blackpool, Lancashire, Calderdale, Teesside and Southport bringing in-depth news and features twice-a-week to those communities. Do consider subscribing to support our vital award-winning local journalism.
In more Labour conference news, Jamie Lopez of the Southport Lead was in attendance at the Camp and Furnace to see Southport MP Patrick Hurley appear on a panel entitled ‘Exposing the far right: using the media to counter hate and disinformation’. He called for greater vigilance against the growth of the far-right as he warned there is a network waiting to be “activated”.
A Reform county councillor in Lancashire has publicly offered his support for fracking, arguing it is “safer here than in almost any other country”. Will ‘drill, baby, drill’ extend to Lancashire after all?
And on that very same topic, Blackpool’s two Reform councillors have refused to vote in a motion condemning fracking - with one leaving the room during the debate before votes were cast.
As we look towards this weekend, our latest edition of The Lead Untangles will consider the questions Reform need to answer about a scandal involving what politicians in Wales have been up to. And on Saturday David Renton takes a deep dive into what exactly has been going on with YourParty since Sultana and Corbyn went their own way.
Throughout October we will also be marking Black History Month with a number of special reports on the issues affecting Black communities now in 2025, commissioned and edited by our National Editor Natalie Morris. Ensure you’re signed up to get all this direct to your inbox.
Thanks as always for reading and take a subscription to support us in bringing you writing beyond the mainstream and independent journalism that is nuanced and covering the people, places and policies affecting the UK right now four times-a-week.
Ed, Natalie, Zoë, Luke, Ella, Padraig, and The Lead team.