LabourList, the party’s grassroots website, has revealed Labour’s draft policy platform. It gives a long summary of the 86-page policy handbook, which is split into six sections: a green and digital future, better jobs and better work, safe and secure communities, public services that work from the start, a future where families come first, and Britain in the world. I’ve read it, so you don’t have to (though you might want to).

These policies still need to be agreed by the National Policy Forum, with amendments subject to approval at Labour’s party conference. Finally there will be a Clause V meeting, where the party's National Executive Committee and Parliamentary Labour Party agree on the final policy platform.

First and foremost, when it comes to policies supporting entrepreneurship, there is little in this document that would be out of place in a Conservative manifesto. This is good to the extent that continuity of good things is good for business; this is bad to the extent that there’s a lot that needs fixing. The art of good governance is identifying and successfully reforming the latter.

For example, Labour will promise to tackle late payments and scrap and replace the current system of business rates. Of course, these are things which the current and past Government has promised too. On business rates, I’ll be pushing Labour towards the most thought through proposal, which was led by our Adviser Andrew Dixon: Introducing the Commercial Landowner Levy.

As per the current Government, Labour wants to “unlock the supply of patient capital for fast-growing digital businesses”. I would replace “digital businesses”, which is too broad, with “deep tech”, which is what the new LIFTS programme will aim to do. We will also be pushing for Labour, if elected, to conserve the Conservative Party’s support for Focused research organisations (FROs), which would give entrepreneurs, scientists, and engineers a new pathway for developing the sorts of transformative technologies which will be required to tackle pressing public problems.

Labour wants to “ensure the UK capitalises on its world-leading universities and research base to grow the number of spinouts”. This is something that the current Government is suddenly – and somewhat surprisingly – animated about – as mentioned last week, there is a consultation on the topic. This is a technocratic enough issue that hopefully we will see continuity if Labour come to power.

There are nods to traditional Labour policies. The unions, who contribute over half the party’s donations and loans, feature heavily. As such, some of the language feels very 1970s, but it’s not inherently bad, and could be positive if they can, as the document suggests, carefully fix the awkward fudge on worker and employee status (without damaging flexibility for those that want it).

As the Labour Party needs to keep the unions onside, the Conservative Party is held hostage by its Nimby voters on one of the biggest issues of the day: planning reform (see here). Labour is promising to build. We can but hope.

One area that piques our interest is around data and IP reforms. Labour wants to: “ensure our world-class researchers and businesses have the data and computing infrastructure they need to compete internationally”, “ensure our intellectual property system is fit for the digital age”, “make it easier for public services to adopt innovative technologies by removing barriers to data-sharing and smart procurement”, “use new capabilities in data analysis and AI to deliver better public services”, and “introduce robust regulation that opens up data while enshrining consumer rights.”

This is potentially along the lines of what we’ve been calling for across numerous reports. If expanded out it could be genuinely transformative. We could make the UK the best place in the world for AI research while aping digital states like Singapore, South Korea, the Scandinavian and Baltic States, but with larger populations and an already more advanced entrepreneurial, financial and research ecosystem.

That said, according to the draft platform, Labour would “bring about the biggest wave of insourcing of public services in a generation.” While the UK has undertaken many failed procurement projects, it’s also failed on as many internal projects. The problem isn’t outsourcing, but the way procurement is undertaken. And while this document states it wants to “cut red tape and streamlining the bidding process to level the playing field for small businesses” it would also burden businesses with social, environmental and labour clauses. These are all worthy goals, but they are better pursued in ways that won't hold back the innovation and economic growth that will let us pay to achieve these same goals.

I could go on. But I’ll wait until future weeks. On Wednesday we’ll be speaking with Stephen Kinnock MP, the Shadow Minister for Immigration, so will hopefully be able to understand its business offer better then. Get in touch if this is a topic you care about – we might be able to squeeze you in.