Boxing Clever

It’s fascinating to watch the evolution of Keir Starmer, inching towards power but determined to stay calm and in control. Above all, not to give the Tories anything they can use - which seems to involve agreeing with them so they don’t have anything they can put in a leaflet.

He was asked, for instance, if he agreed with Sunak’s comment in his conference speech that “A man is a man and a woman is a woman”. “Yes, of course. You know, a woman is a female adult.” Time was, he’d have said “It’s not as simple as that”, and then Johnson would have mocked him because he didn’t know the difference between a man and a woman. Now, he plays safe, accepts the caricature, and consigns the trans issue to the bin - with all the ridicule and harassment that that involves.

Shockingly, the Tories embark on new drilling in the North Sea, at Rosebank. This is a massive U-turn for them, and a denial of any sensible climate policy, but Labour refuse to say they’ll reverse it. Keep the Tories guessing, even if that means not being honest with the electorate. It’s worse than that. A clear Labour statement that they’d reverse it would inhibit investment and delay a destructive development, but none of that is as important as playing mind games with the opposition. Peter Mandelson must be delighted.