Thread by @shaunjlawson

As I'm clearly on some madcap mission to set a world record for number of followers lost in the shortest possible time, this thread sets out what my Shadow Cabinet would look like if I were leader (and assumes that Starmer will become leader).

There's an immediate health warning attached because if I were leader, literally the first thing I'd do is talk to the SNP, the Lib Dems, the Greens and Plaid Cymru, in the name of setting up an anti-Tory progressive alliance for the rest of the Parliament.

If they agreed to it, they'd get representation in the Shadow Cabinet based on numbers of seats. So SNP would get about a quarter of the number of Labour Shadow Cabinet members; Lib Dems would get one, PC would get one (Wales), Greens would get one (Environment/Climate Change).

But for now, I'll just stick to Labour. Within that, I'd base my choices on:

- Public respect
- Popular appeal
- Performance at dispatch box
- Ability to reach out and persuade unpersuaded
- Representing the whole party
- Vision and ideas
- Looking like the country itself

At least some of this isn't going to go down at all well. 😇 But y'know, try and bear with me.

Leader: me, obviously

Deputy: Angela Rayner (though I'll actually vote for Butler)

Chancellor: Yvette Cooper. Forensic, excellent in Parliament - and as under my leadership, we'd demand the work capability assessment be axed, making that announcement in her budget response would be extremely powerful. Someone admitting they got something very wrong is healthy.

Yvette has plenty of respect in the country; would be a good figurehead showing that we'd changed; renouncing the WCA would actually help publicise why it's such a total disgrace, and not as she originally intended; and she'd beat Savid Javid like a drum.

The only real downside? The sexist, misogynist right wing press referring to her as Ed Balls' wife. But if they think women are someone else's property, that just shows them up for what they are.

Cooper being so strong on Brexit would also help her oppose Javid's awful plans.

Note: the other day, @AaronBastani suggested that Rachel Reeves is in line for the job. Confirming that I have a *line* too, I'd be appalled if that happens. Reeves is cold, lacks humour. and comes across like she hates progressive politics and visionary ideas.

@AaronBastani Foreign Secretary: Hilary Benn. Yes yes, I know, I know. He's experienced in the position already; his Syria speech showed how brilliant he is in Parliament; and he's so much more authoritative than Dominic 'I didn't know the English Channel existed' Raab, it'd be man v boy.

@AaronBastani Benn's speech went down extremely well with exactly the sorts of voters who've given up on Labour and think we're not patriotic and hate the West. No, that's not because they're all warmongers - anything but.

Labour has a long tradition of internationalism. He taps into that.

@AaronBastani Home Secretary: I'm really torn here between two people: David Lammy and Dawn Butler. In the end, I slightly lean towards Lammy: because his fulminations against the hostile environment have been MAGNIFICENT. And always go viral.

@AaronBastani Imagine the contrast between a pro-death penalty, almost sadistically cruel woman who blames the poor for their own poverty and will, I'm quite sure, preside over another Windrush and someone who embraces immigration, is decent, kind and frankly, everything a politician should be

@AaronBastani I find it utterly absurd that Lammy has not played a major role on Labour's front bench. He's one of the best talents we have. He must play such a role going forwards.

@AaronBastani Meanwhile, Emily Thornberry is so damn good in Parliament that I'd consider keeping her as Shadow First Secretary. The problem is if I didn't, she'd be demoted - and I'm not sure she'd accept that. Benn would do that job fine in her absence though.

@AaronBastani Under my leadership, below the four biggest offices of state, the next most important role - and ever more important going forward - would be:

Environment (and Climate Change): Rebecca Long-Bailey. She wrote the Green New Deal - it's her who should therefore have this role.

@AaronBastani Now, there's an argument - a strong one - that the Green New Deal actually relates more to industrial strategy. If so, I'd keep her in her current position. It'd depend on our strategy for how we advance the GND going forward.

@AaronBastani And once in government, I'd have at least a view to promoting RLB to replace Cooper. Because the green new deal must be at the heart of all our economic ideas - and nobody is a better advocate of it or more visionary in that sense than Long-Bailey.

@AaronBastani Health: Easy. I'd keep Jon Ashworth in his place. He's very good.

Education: Barry Gardiner (as long as he wanted it). He's filled so many different roles and actually gets better the longer he does it. I know he annoys some; I think he's a brilliant media performer.

@AaronBastani Work and Pensions: this is where I'd place Dawn Butler. She's warm, caring, and her sheer humanity would shine the brightest possible light on the disgusting policies of this revolting government.

She's also an optimist. We need that badly. "Things will be better under us".

@AaronBastani I'm a huge fan of hers. I think she has the ability to change the whole debate from the DWP being there to punish people to it being there to HELP people. And in my government, it'd be renamed as the Department for Social Security (straight out of the 2019 manifesto, that).

@AaronBastani Defence: Dan Jarvis. He's not the greatest performer in the world; he's a bit like Starmer in that sense. But in public opinion, defence is a quite massive weakness of ours. He deals with that instantly simply because of his background. Tory attacks can have no impact.

@AaronBastani Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: assuming I'd moved RLB to Environment, this is where I'd put Lisa Nandy. Think through her ideas on rebuilding a red bridge and reconnecting our small towns and local communities. Who better for this position than her?

@AaronBastani I would expect this department to work hand in hand with Environment: meaning Nandy and Long-Bailey would be practically a team within a team. Turning the discourse on its head into anything helping the environment being VITAL for the economy and rebalancing the UK is critical.

@AaronBastani Justice: I'd keep Richard Burgon there. How many people in politics have won libel cases against (cough, spit) The Sun? He has a superb intellect and this role is where he really excels.

Women and Equalities: Rosena Allin-Khan. Something of a rising star.

@AaronBastani Leader of the House: if she accepted it, Thornberry. If she can do to Johnson what she so often did, imagine what she'd do to Jacob Rees-Mogg!

Housing: probably Stella Creasy. I'd want to find an important role for her. Her practical qualities could make a major difference here

@AaronBastani Transport: I'd keep Andy McDonald firmly in place.

Scotland: unfortunately, it'd have to be Ian Murray because he's our only MP in Scotland! But under a progressive alliance, an SNP figure would hold this role in any case.

@AaronBastani Chief Secretary to the Treasury: probably Debbie Abrahams. No Labour MP talks about the impact of benefit cuts and sanctions more often. I'd have her in line as a future Secretary of State for Social Security too. And it'd also let bygones be bygones - as long as she's changed.

@AaronBastani Is there anyone - other than Creasy - from Progress who I'd promote? I think there's a role somewhere for Alison McGovern. I'm just not quite sure what it is!

And I'd be sorely tempted to include Jess Phillips somewhere - just to, for want of a better phrase, muzzle her.

@AaronBastani Better inside the tent pissing out than outside it pissing in and all that?

I'd keep most of the other positions as they currently are. But there's someone else I'd want to find a major role for. Clive Lewis.

@AaronBastani Under the progressive alliance I'd be trying to form, Lewis would suddenly become critically important. Because it'd be him who'd be in charge of working with other parties and organising our campaign: communicating it to the public, which would be very confused at first.

@AaronBastani And he'd also be in charge of constitutional reform: putting together our plans on that. It'd be a huge brief, in other words,

As it stands, he wouldn't be shadowing anyone. He'd have a roving brief. And, I think, would be brilliant at it.

@AaronBastani There's others too who I've not mentioned here. Cat Smith does a terrific job with young people and would stay in post. Margaret Greenwood is effective and I wouldn't want to demote her; I'd be looking at a sideways move if at all possible.

@AaronBastani But overall, my aim would be to have a Shadow Cabinet split about 50-50 between men and women; to have plenty of BAME representation within it; and for it to cover the left, centre and right of the party.

There's a lot of talent in the PLP. We need to make the most of all of it