Has Rachel Reeves replaced Angela Rayner as Starmer’s de facto number two?
When Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer landed in snow-covered Davos this January, ready to push business leaders in the Swiss Alps, he didn’t land alone. Instead, the Labor leader attended the annual celebration of international capital, flanked by his shadow chancellor and trusted Treasury ally Rachel Reeves.
Reeves and Starmer’s double act in Davos was another signal of the pair’s political closeness, with the two appearing to be glued together as Labor hones its campaign position in early 2023. Indeed, as British politics approaches the election expected at the end of 2024, Reeves and Starmer are all the more inseparable.
The ever-increasing duopoly is created above all by Starmer’s desire to rebrand Labor as economically sound and financially sound — catering to the political incentives presented by post-Scarecrow politics. It’s perhaps no surprise that a former Bank of England economist has taken the lead in Labour’s Prawn Cocktail Offensive 2.0 campaign. That push also appears to be paying off, with Reeves claiming to have spoken to hundreds of CEOs since becoming shadow chancellor in 2021.
But Labour’s new double-act favorite naturally raises questions about deputy leader Angela Rayner, formally Starmer’s number two. While Reeves has taken the lead in Starmer’s latest policy announcements and business evenings, Rayner has largely been reduced to meddling in the public control box, overshadowing Sunak’s confidant Oliver Dowden.
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It’s one of the hard rules of opposition politics, where time in the spotlight is so coveted that the rise of one spokesperson almost always leads to the equal and opposite decline of another. Something similar seems to be happening between Reeves and Rayner.
Undoubtedly, Reeves’ irresistible rise to the top of the Labor Party hierarchy is at least partly due to the steady stream of financial events Britain has experienced in recent months. As shadow chancellor, which she held for less than two years, Reeves battled with four chief exchequers over economic policy, tasking them with both mini and big budgets.
Needless to say, Labor was impressed. In the 2022 Spring Statement, Reeves blasted the economic proposals of then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak. She accused the then chancellor of living in a “Sunland” where the belief in lower taxes actually translates into higher National Insurance contributions. “Curious and curious,” continued the shadow chancellor.
But it was after the fall of the mini-budget in September that Reeves’ profile received the most significant boost. Sir Keir knows his shadow chancellor’s firmness in the face of the Conservative government’s frequent financial changes gives Labor the perfect lens. Reeves’ continued presence opposite four separate chancellors creates a sense of political continuity and policy reliability.
It is important to note that good optics are combined with an impressive resume of Reeves, from which business leaders can only infer financial acumen. The Shadow Chancellor is a former economist who worked for the Bank of England and the British Embassy in Washington. Businesses can hardly be afraid of this.
Also, like Starmer, Reeves comes across as earnest, shrewd and predictable. She is neither too unhappy nor too happy about the state of the country, and her speeches reveal a person inclined towards financial reform rather than big spending. Indeed, it’s no surprise that Reeves and Starmer have forged such a close political bond.
Then there’s Angela Rayner, the party’s deputy leader and therefore Starmer’s nominal number two. Where Starmer finds Reeves predictable and moderate, Reiner has a reputation as a straight-talking politician whose effective communication can sometimes attract bad headlines. It’s an approach that poses potential problems for the risk-averse Starmer, as we saw in the 2021 conference season when Rayner called the Conservative Party “scum” at an event. This was embarrassing for Starmer, who defiantly stated that he would not use such expressions.
Potential strain on the relationship between Rainer and Starmer also spilled over into the shadow cabinet reshuffle in 2021, which saw the Labor leader make a failed bid to demote his deputy and then the party leader. Starmer’s allies blamed Rainer for the Conservatives’ defeat in the Hartlepool by-election to the old Corbynite regime, but the resulting briefing war between the two offices ultimately strengthened Rainer’s position. Instead of being demoted, Rayner was given a much-enhanced role as shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, as well as the new role of shadow secretary for future work. This episode highlights that Reiner still has significant support within the party, which, combined with her elected position as Deputy Leader, makes her essentially unimpeachable.
It is understood that this is not the first time that the Labor leader and deputy leader have not seen eye to eye. The previous iteration of the Labor Party leadership under Jeremy Corbyn and his deputy Tom Watson was seen as very fragile. Both Watson and Corbyn had large bases of support within the party, but they drew on very different political traditions and their appeals among MPs and grassroots were often at odds. Splits have arisen several times, especially over Brexit and the fight against anti-Semitism. Watson later revealed that he had voted for leadership contender Owen Smith in 2016 despite his position as deputy leader.
But apparent political disagreements between the ruler and his deputy should not create such difficulties. One relevant case study is Tony Blair and John Prescott, who together held the top two positions in the Labor Party from 1994 to 2007. On the surface, Prescott and Blair could not be more different. One was a senior union arsonist and the other a young party modernizer. But Blair refused to see Prescott as a liability, instead using his strengths and links to “old Labour” traditions as a root for New Labor in the party – giving Blair’s rebranding crucial credibility.
Of course, the political context has changed significantly since the early 2000s, and the relationship between the overlapping factions of Labor is now much more complex than the relationship between ‘old’ and ‘new’ Labour. But like Prescott, Reiner may begin to be seen by Starmer as an asset in her own right – with her explosive government-attacking skills used in general funds and other contributions kept within the limits set by management.
After all, the new dynamic at the top of the Labor Party is likely to have more of Reeves’ perceived strengths than Rayner’s perceived weaknesses. The shadow chancellor is central to what makes Starmerism tick – he is metropolitan, moderate, business-friendly and reliable – he sees economic authority as central to winning. So, in Reeves’ political profile, Starmer has stumbled upon a seriously knowledgeable running mate.
It’s her resume, the undertone of which is distilled Starmerism, that has propelled Reeves to Rayner’s de facto second place in the Labor Party.
