For one softly spoken, little-known member of Keir Starmer’s team, it was their chance to shine. Since February the former Treasury economist Ravinder Athwal has been diligently putting together the 136-page Labour manifesto – a lengthy and occasionally fraught process that has put him at the centre of the party’s competing factions. Athwal, a Cambridge economics graduate, joined Labour in 2020 from his previous job as head of growth strategy at the Treasury, where he worked under the then chancellor, Rishi Sunak. Though he was brought in to head up Labour’s economic policy formation, he impressed so quickly that he was soon promoted to being director of policy and in charge of writing the document that could propel his party to power. “Rav is bright, hard-working and with an eye for detail,” said one person who has worked with him. “He is very fair to staff and politicians alike and he is not seen as factional, which means he has been able to manage the various competing interests within the party.” Those who have worked alongside Athwal describe a quiet and thoughtful colleague. “In every conversation he always asks the pertinent questions,” said one. “He is not showy, just smart and thoughtful.”
Athwal’s job in corralling the manifesto has been made easier by the fact that Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves, two policy-minded politicians, have made most of the big calls themselves. The decision to slash the party’s green investment plans, for example, was taken by the party leader and shadow chancellor months ago as the manifesto-drafting process reached its culmination. Much of Athwal’s job has been to help thrash out agreements between the party’s leaders, shadow cabinet members and union leaders, all of whom have a say in Labour’s policy platform. Occasionally this has meant Athwal having to manage direct conflict, whether on policy towards workers’ rights or on how much to use the private sector to help relieve the burden on the NHS. And while most in Labour testify to the calm way in which he has managed such situations, some say he has on occasion been dismissive of others’ concerns. One insider said he had upset several Labour officials during the party’s tense national policy forum last year – a weekend-long meeting between Labour and trade unions designed to agree the template that would become the manifesto. “He is a bit socially awkward, a bit abrasive and can be patronising at times,” the person said. Others, however, say this has not been their experience of Athwal. “He is very well liked – not just by Keir’s team but across the party,” said another who knows him well. Athwal does not like the spotlight and declined to comment for this article. Nevertheless, he was the man called on Thursday to brief journalists on the manifesto’s fine print. “He has solid political judgment and knows how these things work,” said one colleague. “But most of all there is probably no one else in the Labour party who knows every detail of our policy platform as well as he does.”