As some of you will have seen, in the recent Government reshuffle, the Prime Minister asked me to serve as Chief Whip. I got stuck in immediately, and now Parliament has risen for the party conference recess, this is the first chance I’ve had to share my reflections on the new job.
This is a significant and important role in making sure the Government can deliver its agenda. Without a strong relationship between MPs and the Government, Parliament will not provide for the changes the country needs to see. A good example this week is the new Hillsborough Law – a hugely significant and radical change that shifts power back to the people. I want more of that.
It has been a huge privilege to serve as Secretary of State for Business and Trade. I am so proud of what we achieved together – strengthening employment rights, saving the steel industry, reducing industrial energy costs, fixing late payments to small business, and securing those major trade deals with India, the US and the EU. That work will make a lasting difference to jobs, growth and security here in the UK, and I loved every minute of it.
The Chief Whip works closely with the Prime Minister (No.9 Downing Street is my office) but is more of a behind-the-scenes position. Traditionally the Chief Whip doesn’t make speeches or appear in the media. However, it carries real influence in ensuring the Government delivers for the country, and for constituencies like Stalybridge and Hyde.
It’s clearly an important time to be doing a job like this. It increasingly feels to me that the decision facing us is whether we fix our problems with real solutions – be they low wages, insecurity, poor public services or illegal immigration – or descend down a path of divisiveness and decline which will leave Britain poorer in every sense. I know I’ve got a lot to do in this new job to make sure that we make the right choice, but I relish that challenge.
To all those who have asked – no, no actual whips are involved (though there is one in the office). I won’t have a divided party, any more than a divided country, but my style is to draw colleagues together through mutual respect and engagement. Last summer, Labour elected over 400 MPs, brimming with talent and passion for the areas they represent. It will be my privilege to work with them, and my cabinet colleagues, to deliver a programme of change to renew Britain.