Pablo Andrés Gutiérrez
Political scientist specialized in international relations
June 4th elections in the UK ended 14 years of continuous Conservative rule. During those 14 years, the world has changed dramatically. The last time Labour was in power, the UK was in the European Union, Barack Obama was in power in the United States, Russia was part of the G7 and Xi Jinping had not yet come to power in China.
So what can we expect in terms of foreign policy from this government? The key to answering this question is David Lammy, the current Foreign Secretary, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s most trusted adviser, who until before the election had acted as Shadow Foreign Secretary. This figure is typical of the British system where the opposition party creates an alternative cabinet to the government in various areas.
A son of the Caribbean diaspora, David Lammy grew up in Tottenham, London, the constituency he has also represented as a Labour MP since 2000, which he describes as ‘the most diverse postcode in Europe’. He was never part of the London left or radical Labour, but follows a Blairite approach, defining politics as the constant search for common ground.
His ideological approach, what the magazine ‘The New Statesman’ called ‘The Lammy Doctrine’, will be realist progressivism, an approach that seeks to use realist international relations theory to achieve progressive ends.
Thus, Lammy, in an article in Foreign Affairs, conveyed the need for a frank conversation about the global geopolitical situation, the changes that have taken place and the UK’s position in them.
Lammy argues that the international chessboard revolves around the existence of a new era of geopolitical competition, mainly between the US and China, but also with the presence of regional leaders, the use of interdependence between countries as a weapon, and the need to unite foreign and domestic policy.
To address this situation through the prism of progressive realism, the Labour government has set out three main areas of action and a commitment to a climate policy.
The first is to rebuild its relationship with Europe and the European Union. After the strategic mistake that Brexit represented and the subsequent wilderness walk with various Conservative governments trying to stabilise relations with the EU, Lammy intends to take a new approach.
While it is true that the UK will remain outside the EU and there is no question of returning to either the common market or the Customs Union, Labour wants to institutionalise UK-EU relations.
This dialogue will focus primarily on defence. With the war in Ukraine and the Gaza conflict on Europe’s doorstep, Lammy believes it is important for Brussels to be not only a trading partner, but also a geopolitical partner that, alongside NATO, shapes the continent’s security structure.
One thing that will not change in British foreign policy will be its unconditional support for Ukraine in the face of Russian encroachment and the importance of NATO in building any defence strategy. At the 75th summit in Washington, Lammy has championed the figure of Ernest Bevin, a former Labour foreign minister after the Second World War and a trade unionist, whose work was crucial to the creation of the Atlantic Alliance and to the United States maintaining its commitment to the defence of Europe through the famous article 5.
The special relationship with Washington depends on what happens on Tuesday 5 November. David Lammy has an affinity with the Democratic Party, is a friend of Ben Rhodes, Obama’s former national security adviser, and during the Trump administration was highly critical of the US president.
For this reason, during his time as Shadow Secretary for Foreign Affairs, he made several visits to the US, building bridges with the Republicans. He was assisted in this by former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, has met with figures such as Mike Pompeo and J.D. Vance, Trump’s former national security advisor.
However, J.D. Vance, after his election as Trump’s ticket mate, described Britain under the new Labour government as the first ‘truly Islamist country’ in the world to have a nuclear weapon.
It is possible that, if Trump gets to the White House, the special relationship that London has always boasted of will no longer be so special.
David Lammy’s second area of action will be the Indo-Pacific, where he will seek to bring stability and coherence to the UK’s China strategy. Changes in the leadership of Conservative governments, from a tougher stance under Boris Johnson and Liz Truss to a ‘golden era’ under David Cameron, have left London in a state of flux.
Speaking at Chatham House, Lammy set out Labour’s policy towards Beijing, based on what he called the ‘3 Cs’: ‘Challenge, Compete and Cooperate’. This possible cooperation will be wherever possible, especially on global issues such as climate change or artificial intelligence (AI).
As a framework for the rest of the region, London will use AUKUS and strengthen security partnerships with Japan and South Korea. One of its main objectives will be to establish a trade agreement with India, which will undoubtedly be a considerable challenge.
The third major area of action of Lammy’s doctrine will be the Commonwealth. His aim is to revitalise it to serve as a bridge to the Global South. However, this will be difficult to achieve due to the historical colonial legacy and previous policy of conservative governments towards these countries, as well as differences in Western action in Ukraine and Gaza.
Finally, one of the main policies that the UK foreign office will implement, and which was a key plank of Labour’s programme, is climate policy. This programme envisages tripling solar power capacity, quadrupling offshore wind, doubling onshore wind, and expanding nuclear, hydrogen and tidal power.
All of this means the UK will need to establish new overseas investment and strengthen regulatory partnerships. The resources needed to decarbonise economies cross borders, and no country can achieve ecological sustainability in isolation, so international cooperation will be essential.
Ultimately, no dramatic ideological shifts are expected; the policy of David Lammy and the Labour government will focus on stabilising relationships and correcting a policy that has long been confused and disjointed. They will have to confront the isolationist impulses that have dominated the UK in recent years.
Like Lord Castlereagh, who after the Napoleonic wars fought politically to ensure that Britain had a stake in Europe’s future, because he understood that in that future lay London’s security, David Lammy will face the challenge of re-establishing the relationship with Europe. A relationship that is crucial to the UK’s future security, economic and political stability.
