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This Sunday will mark the one year anniversary of Sir Keir Starmer’s tenure as leader of the Labour Party. It hasn’t been an easy or even normal year, which should be taken into account when

assessing how he’s got on. But the truth is that Leaders of the Opposition rarely get to choose the circumstances under which they oppose. A global pandemic in which every speech he made

had to be virtual was not ideal, but it has given him an opportunity to show both leadership and adaptability. Has he done enough, though? For most of his leadership, Starmer has been

something of a Rorschach test. People saw what they expected to see. Those who bitterly opposed his success as a reversion from Corbynism back towards more mainstream politics see failure

and capitulation. Those who welcomed his leadership as a reversion from Corbynism towards more mainstream politics see steadiness and calculation. It is perfectly possible to see both — or

neither.  My sense is that voters, having welcomed the change from Starmer to Corbyn with resounding relief, are starting to get just a little twitchy. The “Captain Hindsight” jibes are

starting to stick. Starmer is seen as somewhat opportunistic – jumping on an issue everyone can see is going in a certain direction, only to claim credit when it does. Despite a lot of

tactical wins, there is little understanding of the overall strategy. Thanks to his frequently expressed stance of supporting the Government through the pandemic where its right to do so,

voters know what Starmer is against, but they are very unclear what he is for.  The party membership on the whole are happy to be getting on with things. Let’s put aside those Corbynite

social media types who believe it to be the height of wit to call Starmer “Keith” on Twitter and those for whom no one who isn’t Tony Blair will ever be right (they think they would accept

David Miliband, only because they never actually had to do so). These extremes of opinion are unsuited to understanding where median Labour Party members are.  Members are happy to be out

campaigning again and largely happy that the endless high fever pitch of the past few years has died down to a background whine. They want to see a bit more policy (they’re wrong, vision and

policy are not the same thing and too many Labour members confuse the two), but are happy to wait until after the local elections.  These elections will be a key test for Starmer. If Labour

does well (which they should, as the last comparable results were disastrous) members will bed down behind Starmer, giving him the time and space to both change the party and set its

vision. If not, the internal uncivil war will start all over again. Starmer has so far had an iron grip on party discipline – aided by qualified support from the soft Left and the Right of

the party. If one of these groups loses confidence and decides he isn’t the man to move the party on from Corbyn, then – ironically – the Corbynite atmosphere will return.  Starmer has spent

his first year trying to get the party – which had fallen into appalling disarray under Corbyn – into some semblance of a professionalism. Having secured his majority on the ruling NEC and

with new leadership under General Secretary David Evans, Starmer’s vision is taking shape. But Labour’s a long way from where it needs to be yet. The party still has a backlog of

disciplinary cases and while, for obvious reasons, action on anti-Semitism has taken precedence, there are still outstanding issues around sexual harassment to be dealt with; far more robust

safeguarding and rules are needed.  Starmer is, therefore, in a difficult place. Two polar opposite things are needed in year two and working out how to divide his time and focus to ensure

both are done is essential.  Firstly, he will need a vision for post-vaccine Britain. This cannot simply be about where the Government has failed, but also the society that Labour will

create that the Tories cannot or will not. This must be grounded in reality, but offer genuine change. That’s a tough balance.  But in order for Starmer to be able to deliver that, he must

finish the job of reforming the party. It cannot remain as centralised as it has become under first Corbyn then himself, but in devolving power within party structures, it must also ensure

that freedom does not mean a lack of discipline or a return to some of the grotesque behaviours that have led to the backlog of disciplinary cases.  Facing both inwards and outwards at the

same time is always a difficult task. But it is also the key facet of the job of Leader of the Opposition. It’s what Keir signed up for. He’s managed reasonably well under difficult

circumstances. But it will be as things return to normal that he will truly be tested.  _Emma Burnell is the author of the newsletter Hard Thinking on the Soft Left. Sign up here. She is

also staging her first play in August – support her artistic work here. _ A MESSAGE FROM THEARTICLE _We are the only publication that’s committed to covering every angle. We have an

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