All Keir Starmer had to do was to sound reasonably coherent – and he succeeded

John Rentoul on a decent enough speech that remained securely in the Labour Party’s comfort zone

Keir Starmer spoke of Labour’s position in the centre ground (Getty)

It wasn’t a great speech, but it didn’t have to be. Keir Starmer is not a great speaker, but he doesn’t have to be. He had to read out a reasonably coherent text, remind people that he once had a real job, and look like a plausible prime minister. He succeeded triumphantly on all points.

He faced a huge political opportunity, handed to him on a plate by an incompetent, overconfident government, and he didn’t make a fool of himself. Given the eagerness with which Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng seem determined to help him, that was all he needed to do.

Parts of the speech were well designed to win over some of the voters Labour lost at the last election. The section on Brexit was surprisingly honest. “It’s no secret I voted Remain,” Starmer said, mentioning something he has tried hard not to mention for the past few years, before adding: “as the prime minister did”.