To take on Reform, Labour needs to fly the flag for an inclusive patriotism

Challenging the narratives of the populist right means offering a unifying vision grounded in respect, writes Keir Starmer's biographer

- Tom Baldwin

Anyone who has felt a bit unsettled by the sight of all the flags recently strung up across the country won't find much respite if they turn up at the Labour party conference in Liverpool next weekend.

The bridges, lamp posts and roundabouts being decorated in such fashion will be matched by a conference platform bedecked in the red, white and blue of the union jack, while the saltire of Scotland and the dragon of Wales, as well as England's St George cross, will also be draped around the halls. By the time Keir Starmer finishes his big speech next week, the conference might even resemble the Last Night of the Proms.

This isn't some effort to appease rightwing protesters nor a sign that the party organisation has been hijacked by them, because Labour long ago began to swap the socialist red flag for Britain's national colours. But the branding chosen this year for what the left resentfully calls "flag-shagging" will perhaps receive more attention than usual because it serves both as a reminder of what's happening beyond the security bubble and a vivid symbol of how much Labour wants to start reconnecting with some of the voters who live there.

No one doubts that the prime minister, and his government, are in trouble. The summer began with a humiliating retreat over welfare reforms, then the hyperbolised "crisis" over Nigel Farage's favourite topic of asylum seekers, before it ended with the resignation of Angela Rayner and the sacking of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador.

It's perhaps inevitable that Starmer, whose popularity ratings currently plumb depths unknown even to his Conservative predecessors, gets no credit for ruthlessly enforcing high ethical standards. Instead, the media focus is on the unfolding chaos of his government amid breathless speculation that, barely a year after winning a huge parliamentary majority, Starmer is running out of time.