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Moment of Hope or Doom Loop of Hopelessness? Reflections on the Labour Party Conference 2026
01/10/2026
Dr Jack Willoughby, Professor Neil Chakraborti and Dr Catherine Parry of the University of Leicester’s Institute for Policy.
Professor Neil Chakraborti, Director of the Centre for Hate Studies and Professor in Criminology, reports from the 2026 Labour Party Conference.
‘Hope again’.
The message of ‘hope again’ was very much in evidence at this year’s Labour Party Conference, not just physically on every banner, every poster and every conference programme, but also as a central theme of the Prime Minister’s speech. Within this speech, hope was referred to in numerous guises: as the antidote to national decline; as being linked to Labour’s historical mission; as a geographically inclusive device; as attached to practical policy deliverables; and as a political outcome rather than as simply an emotion.
This latter point, where hope is conceived of as a bridge between emotional renewal and a programme of economic and institutional reform, was a recurring theme across panels throughout the conference. Amidst a tsunami of domestic and geopolitical challenges, speakers from the worlds of politics, think tanks, business and charities came together to frame a more progressive, purposeful – and yes, hopeful – policy direction around misinformation, online safety, housing reform, clean energy, the cost-of-living crisis and other urgent areas of concern. This was reinforced within our own Institute for Policy panel sessions where a hopeful vision of a sustainable NHS workforce, good growth and community cohesion was shared and warmly received within each respective session.
This marked a sea change from last year’s conference, whose tone was notably subdued and with its party membership divided. Following his expedient arrival into Number 10 over the summer, the Prime Minister has been riding the crest of a wave with his party’s supporters, and their support for a fresh style, approach and messaging was unwavering. Conference week marked the first time in nearly 18 months that Labour has led Reform in the polls; a marked shift from their 8-point deficit the previous year.
But with hope comes expectation. And this is the moment where eyes will invariably turn to the forthcoming budget at the end of October where the true cost of these pledges and trade-offs will start to emerge. The realities for many sectors, universities included, will continue to be challenging. While details on research and innovation spending, the international student fee levy and other elements of university funding are eagerly awaited, it feels likely that the needs of a sustainable and future-facing higher education sector will fall behind other keenly felt priorities which resonate more loudly with the wider public.
Equally relevant to universities will be the recommendations of the highly anticipated Milburn review of young people and work. Published later this year, its key interim finding is likely to be reinforced within the full report and embedded into Government thinking: namely, that higher education is too frequently positioned as a default option at the expense of technical and vocational routes.
What this means in practical terms will continue to be analysed and debated over the coming weeks and months. There remain some knowns, more unknowns and even more unknown unknowns around the current domestic policy agenda, particularly in relation to generating growth amidst prevailing economic, geopolitical and digital turbulence.
But as this party conference showed, perhaps more than any other in recent history, a sense of hope can underpin strategic direction. Particularly when hope is grounded not in baseless optimism or in soundbites, but rather in sincerity, collective buy in and a commitment to bettering lives. And as we all search for a better tomorrow, this vision of hope is one which is likely to ring true across most sectors, not least our own.