Labour will publish its policy review on Thursday, ordering a refocus on jobs, families, work-life balance and security, as well as a new message on community spirit renewed by the pandemic.
The party will hope to use the review as a moment to reset after a difficult six months including a catastrophic byelection loss and a messy reshuffle – and talk expressly about the party’s values, a conversation often drowned out by internal divisions and a lack of airtime because of the pandemic.
The Guardian understands that the party chair, Anneliese Dodds, will tell Labour to focus on tangible goals to change people’s lives and to take inspiration from the community spirit fostered during the pandemic which helped heal years of division stoked by Brexit and culture-war tensions, which the party will say were deliberately provoked by the Conservatives.
Dodds, who was demoted from shadow chancellor after the May elections, has examined decades’ worth of previous policy reviews to find out what methods worked most effectively at communicating with the public and setting a definitive agenda.
There is not expected to be any new policy recommendations and shadow ministers will be urged to see the document as a starting point to build flagship, transformative policies for an expected early election, rather than a finished product.
The priorities set out in the document are intended to be broader than specific shadow cabinet briefs and all six themes will emphasise the need to take racial, gender and social inequalities into account.
They will include jobs, green and digital innovation, building safe and secure communities and reforming public services.
The party’s conference this autumn is likely to be the first high-profile confrontation with the party’s left over any policy differences that may emerge.
Key leftwing groups such as Momentum are likely to demand a renewed acknowledgment of Starmer’s 10 pledges on key issues which he made during his leadership campaign, including on tax avoidance, peace and justice abroad and public ownership. There is disquiet on the left from many who believe Starmer’s promises will not be kept.
Labour faces a difficult new test at the Batley and Spen byelection on 1 July, which the Conservatives hope to take after a landslide victory in the Hartlepool byelection last month.
