As the year winds down and the festive season begins, Whitehouse Communications is here to wrap up 2025’s biggest wins, stumbles, and surprises in British politics. Welcome to Who’s Top Who’s Not 2025 Wrapped - your festive guide to the highs, the middles, and the lows of the political year.
Top – Zack Polanski
This year, Polanski has achieved what few leaders of minor parties have ever managed: he has made the Green Party feel relevant, confident, and - most alarming of all for the major parties - electable.
Rising from a London Assembly fixture to a national political figure, Polanski has rapidly elevated the Greens’ profile and influence, overseeing a 10-point jump in polls and a doubling of membership, a clear demonstration of what commentators have dubbed the “Zack Polanski effect”.
What sets Polanski apart isn’t just the numbers, but the way he has reframed the Greens’ role in the political ecosystem. Under his watch, the party stopped sounding like a well-meaning conscience floating outside the room and started acting like a party with real influence at the table, particularly on economic issues.
Part of the Polanski effect lies in his communication style: direct and confident, reminiscent of Nigel Farage and in contrast to Keir Starmer’s more cautious and measured approach.
By blending ecopolitics with economic populism and a sharp media instinct, Polanski has positioned the Greens as a credible home for leftwingers who feel politically homeless and disillusioned by Labour.
Middle – Kemi Badenoch
After a rocky start, marked by occasional missteps on policy details and a few impulsive comments, Badenoch has slowly found her footing. Her strong conference speeches, solid Budget appearances, and sharper performances in Prime Minister’s Questions have helped quiet the murmurs of internal unrest, earning her a reputation as a leader quietly stabilising her party.
Badenoch has begun restoring Conservative credibility, at least enough to counter Nigel Farage’s narrative that the Tories are finished. Smart appointments have stabilised a party weakened by organisational chaos, while signalling that the Conservatives can still offer a coherent economic message - focusing on tax cuts, welfare reform, and fiscal restraint.
Yet challenges remain. With public support stuck around 20 percent, the party remains unpopular, far from looking like an alternative government, and vulnerable to Reform.
Still, in a year when many expected the Conservatives to implode, Badenoch has prevented further collapse and reminded voters that the Conservative Party can still play a role in Britain’s political story.
Bottom – Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting has faced one of the most daunting portfolios in British politics: the NHS. Tasked with managing a health service under immense strain - rife with staffing shortages, hospital backlogs, and repeated doctors’ strikes - his time in office has been shaped by crisis management.
Streeting has shown clear commitment in negotiations with unions and addressing workforce concerns. But his public handling of the doctors’ strikes, marked by open clashes with medical unions and a hard line on pay and disruption, has made him a lightning rod for criticism.
Yet these efforts have often been overshadowed by failures on the ground: strikes continue, patient waiting lists remain high, and media coverage highlights the NHS’s ongoing turbulence.
Polling reflects this tension: Streeting has lost ground in popularity, with many voters unconvinced that small wins are enough to steady a health system in visible distress. And with his naked leadership ambitions practically out in the open, he needs a big 2026 if he is to take the top prize.
Whether 2026 will see him turn the NHS challenge into a political triumph, or if this year will be remembered as one where the health system overwhelmed its steward, remains the ultimate test.