The re-election of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader wasn’t the outcome the party’s moderates had been hoping for. At first sight it was a setback to the chance of returning Labour to an agenda combining economic credibility with a strong commitment to social justice. An agenda that won it three general elections and earned it the support of many people who value hard work, but believe that a more productive economy should also be a more equitable one.
Since his victory, however, Corbyn has said he wants to reach out to his opponents and wipe the slate clean after a very bitter and divisive leadership campaign. That gives me cause for hope.
Even John McDonnell, the Shadow Chancellor who once said he wanted to ‘overthrow capitalism’, now says he wants an ‘entrepreneurial state’. Many businesspeople worry about his call for an unashamedly socialist economic policy and the cost of his promise of a £10 an hour minimum wage. But if he really wants to encourage small businesses and new industries that gives us something to work with.
Corbyn’s critics have said that they don’t just want warm words about reaching out, they want concrete action. They want to see evidence that he has learned from his mistakes.
Sadiq Khan, who I was proud to support and work for in his successful campaign for the London mayoralty, has warned that if Corbyn doesn’t deliver the party could be out of power at a national level for a generation and could even split. He’s right. The stakes are that high.
Take the British Indian community as an example of the problem. For a long time, way before Jeremy became leader, many have been feeling that Labour no longer represents their values. At a grassroots level, the party sometimes seemed to be reaching out to the Muslim, largely Pakistani community to such an extent that if you were Indian and Hindu you felt shunned.
During the past year I voiced my concerns directly to the then Shadow Foreign Secretary, Hilary Benn, and senior members of Mr Corbyn’s team. I showed them the figures for the shift in political support among British Indians from Labour to the Tories. I told them of a conversation I’d had with a prominent Labour figure who told me that of course Indians voted Tory because they were rich. And I pointed out that there were now more Indians on the Conservative benches in both Houses of Parliament than from our own party.
Did the message get through to Mr Corbyn? I have no idea. But I do know that if he is sincere about reaching out he could show it by starting with our community. We don’t want special treatment, but we do want him to recognise that what we are crying out for – reward for hard work, fair but not punitive taxation for those who succeed, real opportunity for our kids – are values shared by millions of people of all faiths and none who worry Labour no longer speaks for them.
Jeremy Corbyn has been basking in his own success this week, and he has every right to do so. But if he wants Labour to succeed he must now show he wants Britain to succeed. What is he waiting for?
Manoj Ladwa chairs Indians for Labour and is a founding member and first President of the National Hindu Students Forum UK.
