When the history of Keir Starmer's resurrection of the Labour party comes to be written, one of the most important turning points will be the decision to start playing the man, not the ball, when it came to Boris Johnson and Partygate.
Rishi Sunak's key weak spot in the leader debates this election is his career as a hedge fund partner at the time of the financial crisis. Labour believes the prime minister's account of his past will be a fundamental test, given he has built his reputation on his economic competence.
The battle lines on policy have already been drawn for the debate on Tuesday with both sides building their defences as well as preparing their attacks. The Conservatives will want to focus on gender, defence spending and pensions all areas where Labour has been challenged to match their commitments and has not done so.
Sunak believes the debates are key to changing the narrative and that the audience will be watching him for signs of the underdog making a comeback. Labour knows the debate is its to lose and wants to keep the number of these to a minimum, brushing aside Tory challenges to hold up to six head-to-head debates.
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