Hollie Ridley to step down as Labour general secretary this autumn

Hollie Ridley to step down as Labour general secretary this autumn

Hollie Ridley, the general secretary of the Labour party, will resign from her position this autumn after two years in the role. In an internal email sent to party staff on Friday, Ridley announced she will stand down following the party's annual conference in September.

The decision comes as the party prepares for a transition in leadership. Sir Keir Starmer announced in June that he is stepping down as prime minister. Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester and newly elected MP for Makerfield, is the only candidate so far to announce a bid for the leadership and is expected to replace him later this month.

Ridley stated that her departure is due in part to personal reasons. She also noted that stepping aside is the right move to allow the party's ruling national executive committee (NEC) to appoint a new general secretary to work alongside a new leader once they are elected.

The general secretary is a highly influential post responsible for paid staff and operational management, including the running of election campaigns. Because of the role's significance, it is expected that the incoming leader will want a close ally in the position, similar to how Starmer oversaw Ridley's appointment.

Ridley has already contacted the team of Andy Burnham and other senior party figures and prospective leadership candidates to notify them of her decision and express her support for the next prime minister. In her email to colleagues, she stated the next leader will have my full support, as we continue to drive forward the vital work of change and deliver that crucial second term in government.

A career of campaigning

Ridley's tenure as general secretary began in September 2024, when she was appointed unopposed to replace David Evans. She became the third female general secretary in the history of the Labour party.

Her rise within the party spanned almost 16 years, beginning in 2011 when she was 22. She joined as a trainee organiser, driven by a desire to fight the rise of the British National Party in Dagenham, east London, where she grew up. The daughter of a lorry driver and a family support worker, Ridley recounted in her email that teachers had previously told her politics was not for her and that she should have more realistic expectations.

Over the next decade, she held various positions, including:

• Campaign organiser and regional organiser
• Training manager and head of key seats
• Regional director and executive director of nations and regions
• General election field director and CAC (conference arrangements committee) secretary

Ridley is widely credited with leading the ground campaign that resulted in Labour's landslide general election victory in 2024. She also spearheaded the party's win in the 2019 Peterborough byelection. Internally, she is viewed as a trailblazer for senior women, having delivered the first two rounds of the Jo Cox women in leadership programmes.

Party tributes and internal friction

Sir Keir Starmer praised Ridley as one of the most formidable campaigners the Labour party has ever produced. He stated that she served the party with distinction and thanked her for her contributions to the country and his own leadership.

Labour party chairwoman Anna Turley called her a trailblazing campaigner and the architect of a world class field operation. Turley added that Ridley is held in the highest regard by members, staff, and the wider movement, describing her as Labour to her bones.

Jessica Morden, chair of Labour's parliamentary party, described Ridley as an extraordinary servant who never lost sight of the communities the party exists to serve.

However, Ridley's tenure was not without conflict. In recent months, she faced criticism from some within the party over claims that she failed to take the threat posed by the Green Party seriously enough during the Gorton and Denton by election.

Ridley remains a close ally of both Starmer and his former chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney.

The party's national executive committee will now look toward appointing a successor to take over the operational leadership of the party following the September conference.