On the House of Commons terrace, Labour MPs were in a jubilant mood. As they bought each other pints, some kept a watchful eye on the door that leads from the bar to the Thames-side sun trap.
Conversations about Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation on Monday morning were discussed in the manner reserved for a late but distant relative: respectful and brief. MPs craned their necks looking out for one man to join their celebrations: Andy Burnham, prime minister in all but name.
“We need an injection of positivity,” a minister remarked the following day. Inspired by Boris Johnson’s boosterism, they joked it was now the time to tell people to “spend more and shag more.”
Shorts
They were Labour scenes not seen perhaps since the party assumed power for the first time in 14 years, just shy of two years ago. Then, pollsters and commentators warned their landslide was soft, and that the huge number of Labour MPs could prove difficult to manage.
