I think Starmer has done ok so far, but I would agree that he needs to start to show a bit more of a genuine alternative to the current shambles. As others have said though, it’s probably still a bit too soon to launch a new policy platform, as any good ones would simply be nicked by the government and the rest pulled to pieces by their friends in the media.
On the substance of the OP, it’s a bit of window dressing, but I genuinely don’t see why people should be getting concerned about the Labour Party wanting you be seen as patriotic. It genuinely matters to a significant group of voters that the party needs to win back if it to have any chance of power. It also matters to a large group of potential Tory switchers, who probably would never vote for Labour directly, but might be prepared to vote Lib Dem (in places where that matters) if that meant there might be a Labour PM they could live with.
I genuinely don’t see why patriotism and socialism are seen by some as being mutually exclusive. The post-war Attlee government, which is the most effective socialist government we’ve ever had, was incredibly patriotic. They spent a fortune developing an independent nuclear deterrent, basically on the argument that “it’s got to have the Union Jack painted on top of it”.
That didn’t stop them creating the NHS, the welfare state, nationalising key industries, constraining wealthy landowners through planning controls, building new towns, etc, etc. You can do both!