ABSTRACT
When Gordon Brown replaced Tony Blair as Prime Minister of the UK on 27 June 2007, he promised a ‘different type of politics’, that would be marked by ‘open and honest dialogue’ (Guardian, 2007). New Labour had been shaped in its early days by spin, and was built upon making the presentation of policy as important, and sometimes more important than policy itself. Indeed, New Labour’s period in govern ment (1997-2010) had been characterised for many by an unparalleled rise in public relations in all socio-economic spheres and particularly in political culture. In government New Labour built a communications structure of unprecedented scope and scale, with large amounts of human and financial resources expended on presenting politicians and policies in a good light.
