Jarvis has been tipped as a possible leadership candidate Felix Peckham

I instinctively warm to the affable Dan Jarvis, Member of Parliament for Barnsley Central. He’s unpretentious, wearing a black sports fleece and nondescript shirt; no fancy Savile row tailoring for the former British Army Major from Nottingham. His military past is subtly apparent from his quiet, understated, yet assured demeanour.

In light of Paul Nuttall’s election as leader of UKIP and bold ambition for his party to replace Labour, my first question to Jarvis is whether he thinks Labour is still in sync with the concerns of those that have traditionally voted Labour.

“I think it’s for us to prove that we’re not out of touch. We’ve lost two general elections quite badly and I don’t want us to lose a third one. We have to understand the reasons why twice now the public didn’t think they could trust us – we have to learn those lessons and build an inspiring, credible Labour story which is an analysis of the challenges that the country faces at the moment, which are profound.

“None of us should underestimate the scale of the challenge. If there were a general election tomorrow, then it would be very, very hard going for us.”

“None of us should underestimate the scale of the challenge. If there were a general election tomorrow, then it would be very, very hard going for us.”

Inextricably tied to the idea of Labour being out of touch is their immigration policy, with Labour’s leader, Jeremy Corbyn, not advocating a reduction in immigration. This stands in stark contrast to the rhetoric of the Conservatives and UKIP, and indeed the result of the EU referendum, where immigration played a core populist role in inciting people to vote Leave. I ask Jarvis how Labour can be both not out of touch, and in support of immigration.

“We’ve had a referendum, we’ve reached a decision that we’re going to leave the European Union. That provides an opportunity to reset these arrangements. The challenge for the British government is to strike the best possible deal for our country and [ensure] it’s a deal that gives us the maximum amount of access to trade with our European partners, but also the maximum opportunities to control and manage the inward flow of population.”

Jarvis adds: “I think immigration has brought great benefits, but we do have to understand that it also brings challenges. This is one of the totemic issues that the next general election will be fought on. It’s very important that we arrive at a position that people like me can sell to my constituents on the doorstep.”

On the topic of the effectiveness of Labour’s current opposition given a tumultuous 18 months of leadership elections and resignations, Jarvis is honest in his allusion to their lacklustre performance: “The challenge for all of us is to provide that credible and effective opposition. Being candid with you, I think we can get better at doing that; we have to get better at doing that. The Labour Party have now elected Jeremy Corbyn twice, but everybody on the frontbench and everybody on the backbenches do need to up their game.”

We pivot into the conundrum about Corbyn’s electability: can he win a general election? For an MP that has previously claimed Labour faces “annihilation” under Corbyn, Jarvis is far more moderate and cautious in his exchange with me: “The truth of the matter is that I really don’t know. What I do know is that we need to get in the best possible shape.”

“I think we’ve got the right values but I don’t think we’ve necessarily got the right policies yet.”

“I think we’ve got the right values but I don’t think we’ve necessarily got the right policies yet. 2016 has been the most extraordinary year in politics. Who would have predicted that Donald Trump would be the President of the United States? We’ve got elections taking place across Europe, in France and Germany, with huge concern about what might happen there. I think people will look back at Brexit with being part of a process that began with the financial crash of 2008 and there’s been a response from the public to that. None of us know where that’s going to take us.”

Felix Peckham

As a name sometimes whispered around the murky corridors of Parliament as a future leadership contender, and with a sterling military past, I feel obliged to ask Jarvis how he envisions his future in the party. Laughing, Jarvis replies: “what I aspire to do is make a big contribution to serve my constituents, to serve the Labour Party, to do my bit. I don’t have this kind of Michael Heseltine level of ambition that I was going to do this by the time I was 30 and be this by the time I was 40. I don’t have some sort of grand plan.”

Having already covered one of 2016’s political earthquakes, it seemed pragmatic that we cover the other. “Donald Trump’s election is a source of very significant concern for those of us in progressive politics. I think many of us were appalled at the nature of the campaign that he ran. I was absolutely appalled at much of the stuff he was coming out with.

“If you look at some of the people he’s looking to appoint to the big jobs, that’s pretty concerning because there are genuine concerns about some of these people who have been given some of these incredibly important jobs.”

On the topic of Trump, and in the wake of his tweet recommending that the former leader of UKIP, Nigel Farage, should be appointed as the British Ambassador to the USA, I ask Jarvis if he thinks if it would be sensible to appoint Farage – clearly a friend and confidant of the President-elect – to the position.

“No, I don’t think that he should because a job of that nature is some way above his pay grade. What you need to be our ambassador to the United States is a very skilled and experienced diplomat, someone with huge experience. I simply don’t believe that Nigel Farage is up to doing that job. It requires a professional not an amateur.”

Politicians rarely seem to be bastions of positivity and have traditionally struggled to peddle upbeat stories or campaigns – look at the Remain campaign – but some of Jarvis’s warnings are particularly harrowing.

Jarvis is candid about the challenges that Labour face, though none of it is especially reassuring in this era of right-wing populist insurgency. Despite being humble – albeit enigmatic – on the topic of leadership, if Corbyn can’t deliver electoral success for the Labour Party, then they will have to look elsewhere: perhaps in the direction of Dan Jarvis