If Theresa May hopes to upstage Jeremy Corbyn by talking about Brexit, her plan will backfire

It was an ill-advised move: the convention that party leaders – particularly prime ministers – don’t upstage their rival’s party conferences is a long-standing one. To use British troops fighting terrorists in a hostile environment was peculiarly clumsy.

So be prepared for Labour to get their own back when their own annual shindig kicks off in Brighton on September 25. For although there will be plenty of media interest in the latest round of internecine fighting and in the hard Left’s (largely successful) attempts to strengthen its grip on the party machinery, it will not have the spotlight to itself.

This is thanks, in part, to the European Union negotiators, who want to wait until after an expected major speech by Theresa May on Brexit, now expected to take place the previous Friday (September 22). Were it not for this, the previously agreed timetable for talks would have been maintained, and “Bulldog” Davis would have been meeting his opposite numbers, as planned, the previous week.

Of course, Labour spokespersons will perhaps be reluctant to make too big a deal of this inconsiderate turn of affairs. While a prime ministerial visit to Iraq can be easily portrayed as being motivate by party political advantage, the same can hardly be said of the Brexit negotiations, which are vital to the nation’s future while at the same time proving to be a negative drag on the political approval ratings of the Conservative Party and of May personally.

The problem for Labour is in drawing attention to the negotiations itself. While it has successfully made hay of the domestic legislative consequences of Brexit with its doom-laden wringing of hands over so-called Henry VIII powers, the party is on less firm ground when it comes to the nuts and bolts of its preferred Brexit deal. With Labour now firmly behind a principled policy of both remaining in and leaving the EU single market, it could probably do without having to discuss the finer points of Brexit policy on its first full day of conference, which is usually given over to matters of the economy and a keynote speech by the Shadow Chancellor.

Given Jeremy Corbyn’s obvious (and understandable) reluctance to raise Brexit at Prime Minister’s Questions, he will presumably not welcome the coverage of that day’s Brexit talks while his friend and henchman, John McDonnell, is pretending to smile for the cameras and not talk about insurrection.

And the clash isn’t entirely down to the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier; the prime minister has a degree of control over her own schedule, after all. Did anyone think to inform her of the consequences to the negotiation timetable of her intended intervention? Or did she agree to it, knowing her action would have unhelpful consequences for the opposition?

None of this matters to the wider public, of course. Time was when the BBC gave over acres of coverage to the party conferences, and even broadcast whole shows presenting a summary of events and decisions for each of the three main parties. These days, not so much. Few major decisions are taken at these seaside jamborees; and gone are the days (sadly) when Labour delegates shouted insults at Shadow Cabinet Ministers and demonstrated on the floor of conference for one reason or another (or for no reason in particular).

But May would be making a mistake if she thought that playing politics with another party’s showcase event was acceptable. It may be that the timing of both her speech and the next round of Brexit negotiations are immoveable, in which case I’m sure she has conveyed her sincere regrets to Jeremy Corbyn, who will, in turn, have expressed sympathy and understanding.

But perhaps not. These are unique circumstances, so maybe we can consider this apparent disrespect by the government for Labour’s conference as an unfortunate one-off. We must hope so. Because Gordon Brown’s attempt to upstage David Cameron in 2007 is not an example any party leader should attempt to follow.