Sam White (political adviser)
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Sam White | |
|---|---|
| Chief of Staff to the Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office September 2021 – October 2022 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Morgan McSweeney |
| Succeeded by | Sue Gray (2023) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 1974 |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse | Katie White |
| Parent |
|
| Occupation | Political adviser |
Sam White (born 1975 or 1976) is a British political adviser. He was Chief of Staff to Leader of the Opposition Keir Starmer from September 2021 to November 2022.
Early life
White was born in 1975 or 1976. His father is Michael White.
Politics
[edit]White worked for Alistair Darling from 2004 to 2010, including as a special adviser in HM Treasury. He also worked at the Government trade department and transport department.[1]
White became a Strategic Adviser to Keir Starmer,[2] supporting his transition to Leader of the Opposition in 2020[1] and running his response to the COVID-19 pandemic from April to August 2020.[2] He was appointed Chief of Staff to Starmer in July 2021, taking up the role in September.[1] White's appointment came after the loss of the Hartlepool by-election, a "botched" reshuffle, and sagging poll numbers.[3] The appointment was praised by Conservative Party adviser James Dowling, who had worked with White at the Treasury.[4] White's style was described as hands-on.[5] While in the role, White was documented as clashing with Shadow Cabinet member Lisa Nandy over her attending a picket line in August 2022.[6] White was sacked from the role in October 2022.[7][8]
White played a major role in Starmer’s revival of fortunes including in key moments such as Starmer’s critical 2021 Shadow Cabinet reshuffle, the Conference rule changes and handling the fallout of Durham Police inquiry into Starmer. ‘White’s view was that the only one thing mattered for Starmer – whether his Labour Party looked like a credible alternative for government’.
Starmer said White “played an incredible role taking our operation to the next level” and that “under his leadership the team has become better and stronger”.
White has described walking into the Labour Party at ‘rock bottom’ shortly after Starmer had nearly resigned in summer 2021, and realising he had to treat is as a ‘maximum 18 months project’ to have any chance of turning it around.
‘Because of the scale of the change, we needed to make and the pace of it, I realised that to be effective we needed to move fast, but also we wouldn't have luxury of taking people with us and move at the pace of the gentlest. I strongly suspected I would put some noses out joint in moving at pace. I did.’
In October 2022, Labour announced it was moving to ‘an election footing’ and Starmer asked White to step down from the role.
While in post, White faced anonymous internal briefings including a briefing to The Times reported White was "blamed for a series of strategic missteps that enraged the Shadow Cabinet , although no evidence was ever provided for this claim. During White’s tenure, Labour moved from ten points behind the Conservatives in the poll to thirty points ahead.
In a 2024 interview with BBC journalist Laura Kuenssberg, White revealed the events leading up to Starmer asking him to step down in Autumn 2022. With most of the turnaround complete, he had outlined a ‘final phase’ of his strategy, but been unable to convince Starmer to implement it, nor would White back down; ’at that point, it was clear to both of us that my time running the turnaround project was over. It was all incredibly amicable and professional’, he says, White has declined to divulge the details of this private advice.
Media
White is a regular commentator on politics and economics, including appearances on BBC Newsnight, News Agents, Sky News, Bloomberg Times Radio, GB News, BBC News Channel, BBC Radio 4 Today Programme and PM Programme, Five Live and many others.
He has a reputation for not being afraid to give tough advice, admitting his style is ‘the Craig Revell Horwood of political advisers, whenever everyone’s jumping around shouting: it’s a ten! I’m saying “well, it’s a seven and here’s what you can do to improve it.”
In Labourlist, he described Chancellor Rachel Reeves as facing the ‘Nine Circles of Fiscal Hell’.
Other Roles
In 2024 White became the Chair of Foundations: the What Works Centre for Children and Families, which drives evidence-based policy making to improve the lives of children.
White previously worked in senior management roles at the insurer Aviva where he was the author and advocate for Aviva’s Net Zero 2040 Climate Plan. He also attracted attention as part of the ‘the most senior male job-share in the country’ winning Timewise Power Top 50 award in 2018 with Will McDonald.
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Chappell, Elliot (11 October 2022). "Chief of staff leaves amid restructuring to put Labour on "election footing"". LabourList. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Sam White, Special Adviser". PolicyMogul. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ Stewart, Heather; Elgot, Jessica (22 June 2021). "Keir Starmer set to make major changes to Labour backroom team". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ Dowling, James (29 July 2021). "Keir Starmer's new chief of staff has the political skill to reboot the Labour Party". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ "Keir Starmer, mystery man". POLITICO. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ Elgot, Jessica (1 August 2022). "Labour facing 'breakdown in discipline' as Nandy visits picket line". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ Zeffman, Henry; Wright, Oliver; Maguire, Patrick (11 October 2022). "Keir Starmer sacks chief of staff to put Labour in general election mode". The Times. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ Elgot, Jessica; Crerar, Pippa (11 October 2022). "Keir Starmer axes chief of staff to put Labour on 'election footing'". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 October 2022.