Get In
The Inside Story of Labour Under Starmer
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Get In
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About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
Get In is the definitive behind-the-scenes account of Labour’s brutal reinvention and dramatic return to power under Keir Starmer.
From electoral wipeout in 2019 to landslide victory in 2024 and on into Labour’s first hundred days in government, Get In is a blistering narrative exposé of the most significant and ruthless political transformation in a generation. At its heart is Morgan McSweeney, a mastermind of political subterfuge and author of a strategy, years in the planning, to eviscerate the party, bury the left and rebuild it as a vote-winning machine. In Starmer he saw the perfect vessel for his vision: a man with no political identity but burning with ambition and a single all-consuming principle: to win.
Drawing on unrivalled access throughout the party and extensive leaks of internal party documents and WhatsApp messages, Get In shows how together they betrayed and marginalised Corbyn and his followers, then forged a path in which promises, and at times principles, were readily discarded in pursuit of power. From the near-fatal experience of Beergate to the furore over Israel and Gaza and Labour’s chaotic entry into government under Sue Gray, we are in the room as colleagues considered Starmer's future, as Angela Rayner fought back against demotion and struggled to prove herself in the eyes of the British establishment, and as the leader’s inner circle repeatedly crushed their opponents inside and outside of the party.
Richly peopled with the major figures of Labour present and past, as well as those who were pulling the strings of power out of sight, this is the coming-of-age story of Britain's government and a parable for the politics of our times: in an era in which faith in politics has plummeted, this is how to game your way to the ultimate prize. But what on earth do you do when you get there?
'The book about Keir Starmer we have all been waiting for. It is impossible to fully understand this government unless you read it' TIM SHIPMAN
‘Fast-paced . . . cutting one-liners . . . it reads as if the authors were alongside McSweeney and Starmer’ Jason Cowley, Sunday Times
'Extraordinarily detailed and sometimes bloodstained' Tom Baldwin, Guardian
© Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025
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Critic reviews
Absolutely fascinating
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Stunning victory and change of a party and Shambles in power as expected
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Explains much of the confusing messaging and apparent incompetence of a new government that had all the time to prepare but arrived in power with no plan.
I always wondered what machinations were going on behind the scenes when Sue Gray was fired. This book explains it in jaw dropping detail.
Highly recommend.
Finally explains the Sue Gray firing
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Whatever your view on Jeremy Corbyn it was clear what he was and what he was not, and what he believed in. This is just not the case with Starmer, there are are many references to his not liking politics, handing strategy over to others etc, and through no fault of the authors i feel i know him just as much at the end of the book as at the start - not at all.
Morgan McSweeney is arguably more of a central character than Starmer is in this book (which in itself tells a story) and similar to his boss comes across as someone focussed on winning for wining's sake, rather than having great strategies for what to do with the power.
Sue Gray does NOT come out of this well, and to be honest the frantic desire from Starmer to hire her is never really explained. She clearly felt that she was up against the "boy's club" she felt surrounded Starmer, but didn't appear to have done much to help herself either, the book ends with her having been summarily dismissed after virtually the whole of Starmer's staff and indeed the Civil Service turned against her.
The book goes into extensive detail of the closeness of Lord Ali's relationship with Starmer, but does not muck rake and suggest innuendo; it appears the relationship was just as inappropriate as has been portrayed.
The only quibble i have with this book in terms of even-handedness is the downplaying of the appointment of Gray to Starmer's Chief of Staff straight after her investigation into Johnson's lockdown parties (and when she MUST have been speaking with Starmer's team when the investigation was still ongoing); there is a bit on the outcry from "the right" but nowhere near enough on how shocking and blatant this was.
There is also constant reference of "the Irishman" when referencing McSweeney which comes across as some sort of secret code or pet name they have for him, it didn't read well. Similarly the Guido Fawkes site is described as "right wing muck-raking" at least 3 times, which is both slightly biased but worse shows a lack of imagination.
Matthew Spencer as he did with the Corbyn book reads it beautifully.
If you're interested in Politics or how a political party can seize power from worse than rock bottom in one electoral cycle (massively helped by the buffoonish antics of the incumbent PM and a worldwide pandemic) then add this to your collection.
Fascinating, but deeply depressing
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Finds a good balance between detail and readability
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