DisMember writes
Starmer tried the corporate missionary position; Burnham is attempting a full socialist backbend while juggling fossil fuel contracts.
The historical echo
Chris Clarkson
15 July 2020 · House of Commons
What they said
Clarkson manages to bridge the gap between nuclear physics, party bores, and erotica, all while accusing his opponents of lacking quality.
"When it comes to Brexit, the Labour party has had more positions than the “Kama Sutra”, and seems in no position to end the walk of shame that started on 13 December."
DisMember on 15 July 2026 — why this matters today
Six years ago, the Conservative MP Chris Clarkson stood up to deliver a withering assessment of the Opposition’s ideological flexibility. "When it comes to Brexit," he purred, "the Labour party has had more positions than the Kama Sutra."
Clarkson was talking about Europe, but the ghost of that devastating critique hangs heavy over Downing Street today. As Keir Starmer packs his bags and Andy Burnham prepares to visit the King, Labour is once again twisting itself into a completely new shape. The Guardian’s latest data analysis shows exactly how Starmer’s centrist triangulation alienated the party's traditional base, necessitating tomorrow's hard pivot.
Enter Burnham, promising a "distinctly leftwing vision" while simultaneously pledging to be pro-business and drill for North Sea oil. It is yet another breathtaking contortion for a party that seems permanently trapped in an ideological game of Twister. Starmer tried the corporate missionary position; Burnham is attempting a full socialist backbend while juggling fossil fuel contracts. Clarkson’s 2020 observation remains entirely accurate: Labour is still frantically flipping through the manual, desperately trying to find a posture that doesn't end in a pulled muscle.
The contemporary echo
Chris Clarkson’s 2020 jibe about Labour’s Kama Sutra-like ideological contortions perfectly captures the party's dizzying pivot from Starmerism to Andy Burnham.
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