Ben Riley-Smith Political Editor 2 March 2024 800am

Rachel Reeves: the shadow chancellor with something for everyone?

At one spot in the cavernous warehouse just off the M1 in North London, Rachel Reeves is sitting alone, gazing at a line of Egg McMuffins wrapped in their traditional paper sleeves.

At another, she is standing with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, the pair sharing a joke as they prepare to serve food to members of the public who were forced to use a food bank to get by last year.

Reeves, Labour’s shadow chancellor, is a politician who is at ease with the trappings of power but who is equally comfortable working with the people, such as those who rely on food banks – the very people her party must win back in the next general election to get into government.