We've got a plan: Louise Haigh on her journey back to power

Louise, I want to start by just saying, how are you feeling? 'Cause you're on the brink not just of a new era for the Labor Party, for the country, but for you.

Yeah, I'd say my, my baseline every day is frazzled, and then we, uh, and then we sort of get to d- varying levels of stress every day [laughs] depending on how things, uh, pan out.

But it's obviously right now wonderful to be here in Sheffield with you.

I always appreciate getting out of Westminster, and it's a particular pressure cooker at the moment.

Everyone is very excitable and very anxious for what's to come.

But most of all excited, I think.

It is a huge opportunity to turn things around for this Labor government.

Anxious and excited.

What was striking in Andy Burnham's first big speech after it became clear he was gonna be prime minister was that phrase, hope in every heart.

Mm.

Now, the cynics can say, what the hell does that mean? But do you think that's what's been missing, a bit of hope, a bit of optimism?

100 percent, and I think when you look back over the last couple of years, the government never really recovered from the mood music and our positioning as soon as we won the general election, from winter fuel to the 22 billion black hole, and the things can only get worse speech.

Um-

Which Morgan McSweeney, when he did this podcast only a week ago-

Mm-hmm

... admitted it was a mistake.

They were just too gloomy.

Did you shout at the radio and say, I was saying that at the time?

[laughs] I mean, it wa- We were elected on a mandate for change, and, you know, everyone was hopeful when we came in.

There was excitement and ambition for a changed country, and the government immediately turned round and said that wasn't possible.

And as I say, we've just never been able to recover from that.

No matter how many resets Keir Starmer and the rest of the government attempted, it could never get itself out, out of that.

So that's why where Andy positions himself now and how he connects to the country, because as much as we might think we know and have heard all Andy's shtick to death, a lot of the country still doesn't necessarily know about him, and they need to learn.

They've not had the benefit of a general election campaign in which he's been out on the telly every day with his whole team around him.

So he's got a big obstacle to overcome to become known to the country as a whole, but it's a huge opportunity as well because he can tell that story of hope and optimism that has been missing.