What’s next after 14 years of Tory rule in Britain?

At around 5am on Friday it was finally official: Labour had won a landslide victory, and Keir Starmer would become the next prime minister of the United Kingdom.

After 14 years of Conservative rule that brought us austerity, Brexit, the Windrush scandal, Partygate, Grenfell, PPE corruption, economic decline, food banks – the politics of division and cruelty – the British public sent the Conservatives a clear message: get out, and shut the door behind you.

In many ways, it was an amazing night for progressives in Britain, and people who care about Britain around the world. A massive landslide encompassing big wins in Wales, Scotland, the north, south and Midlands. Some of the most divisive Tory MPs of the last government, including Liz Truss and Jacob Rees-Mogg, losing their seats. Record-breaking wins for the Liberal Democrats and the Greens. Gaza having an impact. Podium speeches emphasising the peaceful transfer of power. A rare bit of good news when politics in countries such as France and the US is looking ugly.

On the other hand, the extraordinary success of the hard-right Reform party, gaining more than 14% of the vote nationally, seems disturbing. Britain’s old-fashioned voting system means Reform won only five seats, but the vote share and the pronouncements of many of those representing the party present a deep concern for the future. And Labour’s own vote share was only slightly bigger than when it lost badly at the last election, in 2019.

Our coverage of the election over a long and fascinating night was terrific: from Andrew Sparrow’s unrivalled liveblog, to a network of reporters fanned out across the country and our brilliant interactive results tracker. We’ve produced unmissable podcasts including Politics Weekly UK, Today in Focus and Election Extra. There were election-defining scoops like Pippa Crerar’s story about Conservative insiders allegedly betting on the election date and this week’s reporting on the extravagant lifestyle and past controversies of new Reform MP Nigel Farage’s mysterious aide, George Cottrell.

All of this work is funded by you, our readers. We never forget that. If you’ve appreciated our UK election coverage, and aren’t already a Guardian supporter, we’d be very grateful if you could back our reporting.

So that’s that. This Conservative era is over. We will be holding the new government to account, which I know is what you expect from us. But we might enjoy the first weekend of this Labour moment.

Until next week.

It was another highly significant week in the US, where the stakes in the presidential race shifted into a new gear. We continued to cover the fallout from Joe Biden’s disastrous performance at last week’s debate, while David Smith’s analysis looked to Biden’s inner circle as Democrats cast around for blame. Rebecca Solnit called out the Supreme Court’s decision to grant Donald Trump presidential immunity for official acts as corrupt, unconstitutional and an extension of the January 6 insurrection. But she ended with a crucial message of hope: the importance of the people’s vote.

As the far-right National Rally in France recorded a historically high showing in the first round of snap parliament elections, Angelique Chrisafis looked at how Emmanuel Macron’s big gamble came crashing down around his ears, while Jon Henley travelled to Calais and Dover to look at how angry voters in France and the UK turned on their leaders.

The week in Australian politics was dominated by news that Senator Fatima Payman would quit the Labor party after crossing the floor on a vote about Palestinian recognition. Sarah Basford Canales spoke to Harry Quick, the last Labor MP to cross the floor, about how he coped with the fallout.

An unprecedented early storm has been ripping through communities in the Caribbean and some believe it could be the start of worse to come, thanks to overheated oceans. Natricia Duncan, our recently appointed Caribbean correspondent, reported on the terrible damage caused by Hurricane Beryl in St Vincent and the Grenadines. Meanwhile, in California, there were equally scary scenes of damage caused by the Thompson fire. Reporters Gloria Oladipo and Gabrielle Canon covered what is now sadly an annual scene on the US west coast.

As Glastonbury packed up for another year, Dorian Lynskey wrote a perceptive piece about the songs that sum up the Tory era, from the anger of Ill Manors by Plan B to Anohni’s blast against indifference to the climate crisis. Black by Dave stands out for me.

Finally, back to the UK and two very different pieces to mark the end of Conservative rule. Novelist Zadie Smith wrote about how she has dreamed of this rare moment of progressive victory and suggested that, by looking back at previous wins like Labour’s in 1997, “we can remind ourselves that a more just society is possible”. Guardian cartoonist Martin Rowson looked back at some of his best cartoons from this era of tragedy, cruelty and slapstick and concluded that it’s time “the jokers stick to politics and leave the jokes to us professionals”.

One more thing … A hardworking, earnest woman politician meets an angry Afghanistan war veteran separated from his children: it might sound like a bit of a cliche, but The Constituent at London’s Old Vic theatre was terrific. It is brilliantly acted by James Corden, Anna Maxwell Martin and Zachary Hart and seems like it has found its perfect moment in Britain at the end of this extended Tory era, featuring mass disillusionment with politics, violence beneath the surface, and a situation that’s bad for (almost) everyone.

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Wednesday 7 August 2024, 8pm-9pm (BST)

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