The rebuild starts with an honest account of why Labour lost.

There may be good reasons to switch to heat pumps and EVs, but it is hard to make the case that this is the best way to help those more worried about the end of the month and paying their bills, than the end of the world. Neither did Labour lose because voters found it insufficiently left wing. Over half the population just voted for a centre-right government; only a third for parties of the left.

It will be a terrible mistake if Labour wastes the first years in opposition trying to become a Diet Green Party. If you are inclined to vote Green or Te Pāti Māori, why not vote for the real thing?

Jacinda Ardern’s initial success proved that progressive values are popular. She campaigned on tackling inequality, governing for the many not the few, and lifting children out of poverty. While values are constant, policies should adapt and change to fit the world we live in. Labour’s policies jarred with its rhetoric. The priorities of traditional Labour supporters, working people on low incomes, were put lower on the agenda than the priorities of the urban middle class.

Great parties need great causes, and Labour didn’t have one.

Opposition is a time for an honest account of why you lost, followed by renewal. The French Socialist party is a salutary reminder of the alternative. After many decades in and out of government, the party cratered on just 1.75% of the vote in 2022. Parties that don’t change sometimes disappear.

Josie's post-election analysis of why Labour lost is here.