Hero voters: who should Labour target? with Chris Curtis MP & Deborah Mattinson

Hero voters: who should Labour target? with Chris Curtis MP & Deborah Mattinson

Author: The Spectator April 6, 2026 Duration: 30:37

Labour won the 2024 general election in part by focusing on ‘hero voters’ – so called because they may have voted Labour in the past but felt the party had abandoned them. Now they risk losing them again – so how does Labour maintain their support?


Chris Curtis, Labour MP for Milton Keynes North and former pollster, and Deborah Mattinson, Labour peer and polling guru, join Tim Shipman to talk about how to appeal to this set of voters. Research suggests that voters from this group that are socially liberal are switching to the Greens, while the socially conservative voters are switching to Reform. What binds both groups though is a sense of economic insecurity, and both Chris and Deborah talk how Labour can build a strategy around appealing to their sense of fairness. Can you separate economic insecurity from values? How does immigration fit into the equation? And how broad a coalition can you build before it becomes unsustainable? 


Plus: in 2026, what does it mean to be ‘working class’?


Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.


For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.


Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


For a clear-eyed take on the day’s political developments, Coffee House Shots delivers concise, sharp discussion straight from the heart of Westminster. This daily podcast from The Spectator gathers the magazine’s most astute political observers-voices like Michael Gove, Tim Shipman, Isabel Hardman, and James Heale-around a virtual table for the kind of frank, insider conversation that happens away from the cameras. Each episode cuts through the noise of the 24-hour news cycle to examine the real forces shaping policy, elections, and power struggles. Listeners get more than just a recap of headlines; they’re offered analysis of the strategic calculations, the personal rivalries, and the underlying trends that the major bulletins often miss. The tone is informed and direct, reflecting the depth of experience within The Spectator’s team. It’s designed for anyone who wants to understand not just what is happening in British politics, but why it matters and what might happen next. Tune in for a regular dose of perspective that feels less like a formal briefing and more like overhearing a crucial chat in the corridors of influence. This podcast provides that essential context, making sense of the rapid flow of daily news with authority and clarity.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Coffee House Shots
Podcast Episodes
Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 29/03/2026 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:39
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows.The Iran conflict has reached its second month. Figures from across the political spectrum debate how best to respond to a leap in energy prices.Be…
Energy crisis: are we in 1973 territory? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:33
The panic has set in around the cabinet table about this energy crisis, and fears of history repeating itself. Tim Shipman writes in the magazine about the comparisons being made to 1973 and the Opec oil shock, with the…
The curious case of Morgan McSweeney's missing phone [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:22
Questions are being asked about Morgan McSweeney's missing phone, which he reported stolen to police last year. What might seem like a minor case of petty theft actually has serious implications for the investigation int…
To drill or not to drill, that is the question [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:26
In the final Prime Minister's Questions before Easter recess, Kemi Badenoch pushed Keir Starmer to commit to new oil & gas drilling licences. The Conservatives spot an easy win here – cost of living concerns are rising a…
Should we brace for another financial shock? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:25
Britain’s response to the conflict in Iran is dominating Westminster – but is Keir Starmer really keeping the country out of war? After a tense Liaison Committee appearance exposed divisions over defence spending, pressu…
It’s Ed Miliband’s world – and we’re living in it [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:58
Three big stories are on the agenda this morning: the war in Iran has dominated over the weekend, with Trump now failing to conceal his feelings towards Keir Starmer; Ed Miliband is also rising in profile, with those clo…
On the road with Nigel Farage [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:30
This week James Heale and Tim Shipman share a byline to tell the story of Reform since the 2024 election, and where they are going. Nigel Farage reveals he is talking to potential Blue Labour defectors, shifting his lead…
LIVE: is it time for a Tory-Reform pact? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:37
As Reform chips away at the Tory vote, the Conservatives face a stark choice – join forces with Nigel Farage or fight alone. James Heale, The Spectator’s deputy political editor, will be joined by Conservative peer Danie…
Britain’s decline – and how to reverse it | with John Bew [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:17
In this special edition of Coffee House Shots, our political editor Tim Shipman is joined by historian, biographer and foreign policy adviser to four different prime ministers, John Bew. In his 7,000-word essay published…