Tony Blair: Labour needs 'head to toe renewal' if it is to win again
2 min read
Labour needs "head to toe renewal" if it is to once again be a party of government, according to Tony Blair.
The former Prime Minister - the only living person to have led Labour to election victory - will say his party "has too often been a failure" throughout its history.
In a speech marking Labour's 120th anniversary, Mr Blair - a hate figure to many on the left - will say the party must have "the mentality of government" rather than retreating to left-wing causes out of touch with ordinary voters.
His comments come as Labour members prepare to elect another new leader in the wake of last December's crushing election defeat.
Mr Blair will say: "Out of 120 years, Labour has been in power for just over 30 of them. That is a stark statistic. We now have another Tory government for fice years; and possibly for 10. Were that to happen, Labour would have been in office less than a quarter of its existence.
"Bluntly, what Labour has stood for in terms of values has been magnificent; its achievements in Government huge; but as a political competitor, it has too often been a failure."
The three-time election winner will add: "The right ideas in politics never work without the right mentality. I mean the mentality of Government.
"Our task is to win power and get our hands stuck into the muddy mangle of governing, where out of it can be pulled the prize of progress.
"Our mission is to take causes and make them practical; to say yes to the ambition and no to over ambition or the wrong ways of realising it.
"To go to where the people are and show them how, together, we can do better. To root our actions in their reality. To align their values with ours."
Mr Blair will say Labour faces "a mountain" if its next 120 years is to be more successful than the first.
"2020 isn't 1997 or even 2007 - and 2030 will be a revolution different from 2020," he will say.
"It’s always about the future. Precisely because of that - because whilst pointing forwards, we have been traveling backwards - nothing less than ‘born again’ head to toe renewal, will do."
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