Labour’s runners and riders: Wes Streeting – Blairite caricature or consumer champion?

As he debates whether to take the plunge, Wes Streeting may draw comfort from the fact recent history disproves the cliché that “he who wields the knife never wears the crown.” Gordon Brown was accused of engineering Tony Blair’s departure but walked into No 10 unchallenged in 2007. Boris Johnson self-immolated in his bid to succeed David Cameron in 2016, only to triumph three years later. And while Rishi Sunak was punished by Tory members for resigning from Johnson’s government in the summer of 2022, Downing Street was his just months later when Liz Truss imploded.  

So perhaps not now, but later – what will a Streeting premiership mean for UK Plc? The 43-year-old Health Secretary has become such a polarising figure in both his party and the health sector that some may still take the caricature painted by the left at face value: an unreconstructed Blairite; Mandelson’s heir; close to big tech; and a politician with an eye for optics over substance.  

On nearly all counts, you are in for a surprise. In some areas, Streeting would certainly be the most pro-business of all Starmer’s likely successors. He has taken a boosterish approach to the rollout of AI-enabled healthcare. His demolition of NHS England – and close friendship with Tech turned Business Secretary Peter Kyle – suggests the Starmerite shake-up of Britain’s regulators would continue. During appearances at Labour fundraisers, he has openly revelled in the ‘Build Baby Build’ agenda pursued by Housing Secretary Steve Reed on planning.  

The recent £1bn BlackRock-Greater Manchester Pension Fund investment in NHS estates, backed by Andy Burnham’s Greater Manchester Authority, is a good example of the kind of business partnership model Streeting is comfortable with: public control, private capital, and a clear public interest test. But even where partnerships deliver, Labour is increasingly wary of appearing too close to big corporate actors. Streeting’s challenge will be balancing pragmatism with political caution. 

Beyond that, the portrait that emerges from Streeting’s time in Opposition and at DHSC is more complicated. While he ultimately reached a compromise, Streeting was not above a public brawl with pharma on drug pricing. Food and drink firms will be only too aware of how he “caught religion” on prevention and pursued a restrictive approach on foods high in fat, sugar, or salt. Health unions may be suspicious of his commitment to the New Deal, but his first few years in Parliament saw him make employment rights in the taxi sector a cause célèbre.   

Consumer rights, meanwhile, have formed a quiet red thread through Streeting’s time in government. As Health Secretary he has styled himself as a champion of patients’ rights against the system, while taking a hard line on strikes from a pro-patient and taxpayer standpoint even when it has meant clashing with NHS staff and institutions.  

The importance of consumers has also emerged in his attitude to health tech – from backing AI in diagnostics to pushing for faster, more personalised care. Streeting has consistently argued that digital innovation should serve patients first, not just providers. 

More than any rival, Streeting defines himself in opposition not to the private sector, but to underperformance – whether from industry or public institutions. That may make him more demanding of business, not less. 

Streeting would likely avoid overtly anti-business commitments in a leadership fight, no matter how hard he is pressed by opponents in the union movement. But he also knows the mood in the party is shifting, with donor controversies and union pressure reshaping the terrain. His record suggests the relationship between a future Labour government and UK Plc may become more conditional – focused on delivery, discipline and public outcomes.  

For those expecting a smooth ride from a ‘business-friendly’ Blairite, Streeting may prove a tougher and more reformist proposition than they imagine.