Sir Keir Starmer needs to raise his game, as do members of his top team

BATLEY has attracted more visitors in the past month than at any time since it boasted its world-famous variety club.

In the 70s, thousands flocked to the Yorkshire mill town to see superstars such as Louis Armstrong, Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones.

Over the past few weeks the visitors have been politicians eager to serenade voters on their doorsteps ahead of last Thursday’s knife-edge by-election.

Sir Keir Starmer returned to take a bow after Labour clung on to the seat by just 323 votes, killing off the threat of an early challenge to his leadership.

But while he richly deserves his curtain call in the former home of variety, it is too soon to be popping open the champagne.

The question has to be asked — why was Labour the underdog in this contest in the first place?

With large white and Asian working-class communities, the textile towns of the Batley and Spen constituency should be dyed-in-the-wool Labour.

And one swallow does not make a summer for Keir.

Like the manager of a struggling football team that scrapes an unexpected win, he knows there is much work to be done.

Nevertheless, as with football, restored confidence is crucial and so, with a sense of relief, I believe the party can now be honest with itself in rebuilding from the grassroots upwards.

But serious action is needed to arrest the decline of the party’s popularity in seats such as this.

Labour’s share of the vote in Batley and Spen plunged from 55.5 per cent in 2017 to just 35.3 per cent on Thursday.

Keir’s battle there was made all the harder because he was fighting on three fronts, against the Tories, the divisive rabble rouser George Galloway and plotters within his own party.

Former Labour MP Galloway has twice won elections, defeating Labour candidates in East London and Bradford, with a far-left agenda and the deployment of every unpleasant trick in the political book.

DEFEATING HATE

Enormous credit is due to Labour victor Kim Leadbeater for standing up to and defeating hate and divisiveness around her.

In this campaign, anti-Semitism, homophobia, thuggery, intimidation and just about everything you could think of was thrown into the mix.

Even the division of Kashmir managed to raise its head in the heart of West Yorkshire.

Galloway’s intention was to destroy Kim’s chances of holding on to the seat for Labour and to bring down Keir.

He failed, but not for the lack of trying, with nearly 22 per cent of the vote.

At the same time, there was another hurdle facing Keir — an early challenge to his leadership.

Friends of deputy leader Angela Rayner were out on manoeuvres, briefing that she would throw her hat in the ring if the seat was lost to the Tories.

Why would anybody think this was a sensible move with all that was going on, including the resignation of Health Secretary Matt Hancock for breaches of his own Covid regulations.

There are lessons for Labour from this contest — and we must learn them rapidly.

The party needs to ask itself how, when we stand against injustice and inequality, people don’t hear the messages we are putting out

How is it that, despite the Government’s gross mistakes, Labour is still struggling to cut through with a clear vision of what we stand for?

The party to which I have given my life must return to its roots.

Building from the bottom and promising to work with people to improve the world, not just a top-down set of promises of what we will do “for you”.

Keir needs to up his game, as do members of his top team.

He should free them to think, write and speak about what they can do for the people of this country.

One thing is certain. If plotters think that reverting to the hard Left, who failed so badly in 2019, is the answer, then we are doomed.

This is not the moment for another spasm of left-wing experimentation in which we alienate the people we care about.

It is time to put division to one side and have a rigorous dialogue about future direction, not only for the Labour Party, but for the country.