Labour must take centre ground from Tories now, says Tony Blair

The Labour Party must capitalise on the defection of a red wall Tory MP by laying claim to the centre ground, Sir Tony Blair has told The Independent.

Christian Wakeford, the MP for Bury South, crossed the floor this week, adding to Boris Johnson’s woes as he remains mired in the Partygate scandal.

The former prime minister said the moment had a “bigger significance” than the Partygate row and Sir Keir Starmer should use the moment to win over those who voted Conservative in 2019.

He said: “It does show that there’s a group of people who maybe backed the Tories for the first time who are having second thoughts.

“At the minimum, you’re trying to persuade people who voted for Boris Johnson to vote for you. Right? There’s no point in treating them as if they’re dyed-in-the-wool members of the left because they’re obviously not.

“Their single biggest worry about Labour will always be, ‘How safe is it for us to switch?’ That doesn’t mean to say they don’t want big change, but they want change where they know in advance what they’re getting, and what they’re not getting.”

Labour has opened up a double-digit lead in the polls in recent weeks, and is 11 points ahead in red wall seats. On joining Labour, Mr Wakeford – who had a 402-vote majority when he took Bury South for the Conservatives – said that Labour was ready to be a government “this country can be proud of, and not embarrassed by”.

Sir Keir said Mr Wakeford would receive a “warm welcome” from his new party, though there was criticism of the new arrival from the left – including from a Labour MSP – over his voting record as a Tory.

Sir Tony said that Labour was now a “much more acceptable proposition” since Sir Keir took over from Jeremy Corbyn, adding that the party had “turned a corner” at September’s party conference by moving to the centre. “I think the far left suffered a major defeat, really,” he said.

In a speech this week on the long-term challenges facing Britain he said that without a plan Britain faced a return to the decline of the 1970s.

He said Labour must focus on filling two large policy gaps – technology and climate – to win voters over at the ballot box for the first time since his final election campaign.

He said: “It depends on having the ability to say to them we understand the future and we’re going to make it work for you.

“Make sure we can get through this climate transition in a way that’s good for you, that doesn’t harm you. Because if you’re in your thirties now you’ll be in your forties soon, and raising a family. And we’re going to create a successful economy because we understand the strengths of the country.

“We understand that technology is changing everything and we’re going to harness it. So we’re going to make you more prosperous, better off, better paid jobs, because we get the future, and the other side don’t.”