It was an undeniably good week for the Work Party, and a bad one for the Conservatives. So it's no wonder that, after half a generation of absence, there is optimism, and perhaps even confidence, among Labor supporters.
Yet this is also a dangerous moment – for them and for the country. The challenges and terrible limitations faced by a British government of any color are all too real.
Take for example, climate changeor the collapse of social care. Or the dire housing situation for young people, the disintegrating fabric of society or the desperate state of our national finances.
These are huge problems. These are urgent priorities. And yet no agreed solutions are available, let alone easy ones.
That is why, even as victory appears to be in sight, Labor must be clear that tribal politics can no longer hold water.
British Labor Party Opposition Leader Keir Starmer speaks alongside Labour's Claire Ward after Ward was elected Mayor of East Midlands, May 4
Conservative party candidate Susan Hall speaks as Labour's Sadiq Khan is re-elected as Mayor of London
Lord Blunkett (pictured) was a Labor cabinet minister for eight years
The task of the next government – the task of all of us – is too great for that. It will take a national effort, not a political campaign, to get us out of the hole we are in now. After more than a decade of division, we need healing.
Today the polls look healthy for my party, but appearances can be deceiving and I think an eventual Labor victory will prove less convincing than many seem to think.
While I was of course pleased that Labor won the Conservatives' by-election in Blackpool South – with almost 60 per cent of the vote – the shockingly low turnout there and across the country makes Thursday's results an unreliable guide to the future.
Apathy is a threat to our institutions and our democracy.
The disruption of the war in Gaza is a further factor causing discontent among some of Labour's core voters, with consequences that cannot be discounted or swept under the carpet. Nothing is guaranteed.
Sir Keir Starmer has done well to save Labor from the disaster of the Corbyn era. But what we need now is a long-term vision of the future that unites men and women of all persuasions – and wins their trust. With the emphasis on 'long term' and 'uniting'.
We need to plan for tomorrow, whether it's building power stations, upgrading the National Grid or increasing the availability of electric charging points, not to mention reforming the NHS and investing in job skills.
That means being honest about the costs and timing, and then investing in the people who are key to its success. British politics has been plagued by short-termism and easy slogans for too long.
But if planning is important, so are its counterparts: collaboration and partnership.
A Labor government must mobilize private sector investment while rebuilding the public purse. We need to agree on a viable plan to make the most of our pension funds and other huge savings to regenerate and grow our economy.
Securing major infrastructure investments means agreeing the way forward with industry and businesses, large and small, and, yes, with some of our political opponents.
That's why Keir Starmer and his team approached business in a way that may have confused some Labor loyalists.
A sign outside a polling station near the Houses of Parliament in London on May 3
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has congratulated Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen on his re-election
Conservative mayor of Tees Valley, Ben Houchen, was re-elected with a reduced majority from his second term with 53 percent of the vote
Labor should realize that the government is not now (and in fact never has been) able to deliver results on its own.
It means looking across political and cultural divides, as uncomfortable as that must be for those languishing in opposition. But it has to be done out of sheer necessity. It is morally right – and it is in everyone's interest.
The alternative? Look across the Atlantic at a world where party politics has left the world's richest country in a state of unmanageable chaos.
It is a specter that we must avoid and fear at all costs.
We cannot imagine that we are immune in this country. For too long there has been a tendency among British governments to believe that the 'winner takes all'.
So many of the most important appointments in the public services, quangos and even in positions of oversight of our cultural and artistic world, have been offered to those on the 'right side' – as the new government sees it – of the political divide.
It is what the philosopher and economist Antonio Gramsci called “hegemony.” Understandably, too often a new administration causes massive and damaging disruptions.
Yet it can also be done in another way. Giving people jobs based on their competence, for example, and not on the way they voted in the 2016 Brexit referendum. That would be a start. When Labor came to power in 1997, I appointed Conservative supporters, including former Tory Cabinet minister Tony Newton, to oversee key government agencies in the belief that they were capable of doing so and that they would command support.
Gordon Brown did it before the 2010 election, with what he called his Government of All the Talents (sadly described as 'GOATS').
It didn't quite achieve its goal, but the intention was good.
Although we are not our brother's keeper today, we are completely dependent on reciprocity for success. The role of the government is simply no longer the same as it was after the Second World War. The world has moved on and is infinitely more complicated.
I appreciate that some of what I say is not nearly as exciting or uplifting as my own early years in politics.
The approach I offer is long-term and has an uncertain outcome, but I don't believe there is a choice. Britain received a radical offer from the far left amid the debacle of Jeremy Corbyn's Labor Party. And then, in 2019, rejected it.
We saw what happened in the 49 days of Liz Truss' whirlwind premiership under the Conservatives, and the economic damage we continue to suffer today.
So why can't we be honest about the situation we are in, about the costs of getting out and about the time it will take?
We also need to be honest about the nature of the British electorate, which even today is cautious and conservative with a small 'c'.
It wants long-term certainty about the future.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has congratulated Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen on his re-election
Ben Houchen speaks as Rishi Sunak visits Teesside on May 3, 2024
Nearly eight decades of post-war politics have finally unraveled – and it is our job to provide that trust and hope.
The key is stability, a steady hand on the wheel. Creating a painting where many can contribute to the finished painting – that is where we should be now.
We must look to those who – whatever way they voted – still believe in our community and may be willing to join a major national effort to restore the UK's reputation in the world.
And restore faith in our democratic processes here at home.
That's a radical thought that I hope the British people will accept when the time finally comes to elect a new government – and start tackling the mess we find ourselves in.
– Lord Blunkett was a Labor cabinet minister for eight years.