Rachel Reeves’s star rises

Rachel Reeves's star rises

SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE July 10, 2023 View in browser Rachel Reeves's star rises As we wait for a shadow cabinet reshuffle, I have been digging in the YouGov databank, comparing the visibility and popularity of shadow ministers in the past three months with the same period last year.  Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, has gained most recognition, although only 42 per cent say they have "heard of" her (up from 30 per cent a year ago). She, along with Jonathan Reynolds, shadow business secretary, and Pat McFadden, Reeves's No 2 in the Treasury team, gained most in likeability. Reeves is on +8 ("like" minus "dislike"), Reynolds on +9 and McFadden on +3. Liz Kendall, social care spokesperson, is on +9 and Jess Phillips, in the domestic violence brief, is on +8.  Keir Starmer is on -8, Angela Rayner -3 and the rest, apart from Ed Miliband on -18 and Anneliese Dodds on -8, are in between. The full figures are here.   Quiz question Who publicly sought nominations from Labour MPs, but failed to secure the 45 required to stand against Gordon Brown for the leadership in 2007? Answer at the bottom of today's email Daily briefing Biden says UK-US relationship 'rock solid' in meeting with Rishi Sunak The leaders reviewed preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius Tory brands a 'significant wing' of his party 'completely insane' Lord Vaizey called on Conservative MPs to stop 'banging on' about tax cuts 'I hate tree huggers': Starmer's apparent green policy outburst A Labour source denied Sir Keir said those words  Articles driving the biggest conversations Senior Tory Brexiteer George Eustice admits UK need more EU workers Articles available exclusively to subscribers A fall in house prices is bad news – especially for the Conservative Party What else do you need to know today?   Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, is to deliver the Mansion House speech tonight, with the advance publicity being about what sounds to me like an unwise scheme to make pensioners better off by allowing their pension funds to make riskier investments But Tony Blair's institute, the most useful and agile think tank at the moment, says it is a "step in the right direction", but "it remains to be seen whether a non-binding agreement between a small number of pensions funds can generate the investment the UK so desperately needs" Labour U-turn watch: Rachel Reeves in interviews with Laura Kuenssberg yesterday and Simon Hattenstone today in effect confirmed Caroline Wheeler's "scoop of interpretation" in The Sunday Times, that a Labour government would follow Conservative tax and spending plans "while the cost-of-living crisis persisted"  I said last week that Threads, Mark Zuckerberg's rival to Twitter, is no good. I should have said "yet". Its boss says it will add a "chronological" feed, which is a step towards a feed of only the people you follow, which is what it needs. I won't write it off yet because it has so much money behind it, and will keep an account there as a back-up in case Elon Musk succeeds in destroying Twitter, which he hasn't – "yet" Thanks to Adam Forrest and Archie Mitchell, without whom this newsletter would not be possible Rentoul's reading list     Alex South on being a prison officer for 10 years Martin Wolf of the Financial Times on Rachel Reeves's economic policy: "Labour deserves a chance. But it does not offer answers we need" (paywall) Ken Clarke, occasional darling of liberal centrists, wrote for the Telegraph backing the government's policy of removing asylum-seekers to Rwanda (paywall)  I wrote at the weekend about how unfair politics is: Rishi Sunak is being punished, as John Major was in 1997 and Gordon Brown in 2010, for doing the right thing; most readers didn't agree with me   Enjoy a year of unlimited digital access for just £99 £20 ✓ Full access to Premium news analysis ✓ Advert-free reading across web and app ✓ The Independent Daily Edition newspaper ✓ Puzzles, virtual event tickets and more SUBSCRIBE NOW Inside the bubble Our political commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for tomorrow The prime minister will be in Vilnius for a Nato summit dominated by the Ukraine war. In the margins, he might discuss the UK's return to the EU Horizon research programme with Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president.  The Commons sits for questions on health from 11.30am, before MPs are asked to overturn many of the amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill passed by the Lords. Some Tory MPs might call for more protection for child migrants and victims of modern slavery. Lenders including Lloyds, Nationwide and Santander will be quizzed about rising mortgage payments by the Treasury Committee at 10.15am. Monthly earnings and unemployment figures will be published at 7am. Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow work and pensions secretary, will outline Labour's plans to use artificial intelligence to help jobseekers at 11.30am. Arlene Foster, the former Northern Ireland first minister, will appear at the Covid inquiry at 10am.  Quotation of the day "If you want someone to do cartwheels and tap dancing, I'm not your person. But if you want someone to run the economy, I'm quite well qualified." Rachel Reeves Quiz answer: John McDonnell, who secured 29 nominations, meaning Brown was elected unopposed We noticed that you might not be registered By registering, you will enjoy limited access to Independent Premium articles, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists REGISTER FOR FREE OTHER NEWSLETTERS YOU MIGHT LIKE Morning Headlines Weekdays, 8am (UK time) Written by the UK team Join now Health Check Every Thursday, 7am (UK time) Written by Rebecca Thomas Join now Morning Headlines Weekdays, 8am (UK time) Written by the UK team Join now Health Check Every Thursday, 7am (UK time) Written by Rebecca Thomas Join now The Independent proudly partners with Refuge and the National Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0808 2000 247 News you can trust The Independent has a 100% NewsGuard trust rating FIND OUT MORE If you can spare a minute we'd love your feedback on our newsletters. 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