We have all spent much of the time in recent years being pushed from pillar to post, dealing with short-term issues and thinking about near-constant elections. We have become increasingly adept at navigating that type of short-termist political environments. But 2025 is the time to shift our focus to the long term.
The seemingly endless stream UK elections of recent years has done little to help the development of policies across a range of sectors and departments. That has, in turn, negatively impacted on public affairs as relationship building has been more difficult with an emphasis instead having to be placed on transactions with its focus on immediate priorities, reactive strategies, and short-term wins.
As 2025 begins, public affairs has an opportunity to refocus. The Labour government is moving beyond its series of initial announcements and is embracing a longer-term perspective.
This shift in emphasis is needed for effective policy development, enhanced reputation management and improved network development.
Policy development – with the dust having settled in the election and Labour having secured a substantial majority, the government can think about the next four years and potentially beyond. That, in turn, means public affairs teams can take a step back to focus on shaping and influencing policy in meaningful ways over that time as well.
The period immediately following the election saw a flurry of announcements, but the real work is now taking place as the government looks to deliver on its manifesto commitments and address pressing policy challenges.
That means public affairs can focus on engaging constructively, providing thought leadership and delivering the insights needed to help navigate complex issues. This represents a shift away from having to constantly react to headline-grabbing announcements and speeches.
This type of long-term policy development requires a deep understanding of the issues involved and an access to the date, information and experience required by officials and advisers. That opens a space for public affairs.
Reputation management – the constant election-focus of the political parties meant that organisations too often had to focus on messages and stories designed to grab attention. On the flip side, it seemed to be too easy to become the focus of a crisis exacerbated by a political pile-on. There was not always the space available to build trust and credibility. It became too tactical, designed to grab or deflect attention, but not the sort of long term activity focused on consistency and authenticity needed to build a reputation with a range of audiences.
There now exists a space to demonstrate genuine leadership on key issues for an organisation. This leadership needs to resonate with the overall strategy, and possibly purpose, of the organisation and can address risks so that reputational resilience is created.
Network development – the space now exists to develop long term relationships rather than those needed for immediate tactical requirements. For instance, it is more likely that government departments will work together rather than ministers being constantly in competition with one another looking for promotion, possibly even to become PM!
That means there is a chance to develop and implement a stakeholder plan that enhances the knowledge and understanding of audiences, rather than having to constantly brief new ministers and advisers.
There is, of course, never any escaping the short term. Governments will continue to announce new policies, and external events may demand quick responses. However, the short term is easier to react to when there are long-term goals in mind. Those long-term goals make it easier to decide how to respond to immediate challenges. The long term helps deliver short term agility.
2025 provides public affairs teams with the opportunity to refocus on the long-term and to shape the future rather than being battered by the immediate day-to-day priorities.