Posted on 09/24/2025 5:01:08 AM PDT by RandFan
The New Statesman
@NewStatesman
EXCLUSIVE: ANDY BURNHAM’S PLAN FOR BRITAIN by @TomMcTague
Andy Burnham tells me that changing Westminster needs to be the focus of this year’s Labour Party conference. “The issue for the conference is: where is our plan to turn the country around?” Still, it is impossible to avoid the implicit point here. Burnham does not believe the current government’s plan is anywhere near good enough.
Being with Burnham in Manchester, it was striking just how at home he seemed. Everywhere we went, people stopped him in the street as if they knew him. Boy done good. Our Andy. It was hard not to reflect on the contrast with Keir Starmer, who many believe Burnham will replace as Labour leader and prime minister. Like Burnham, Starmer sees himself as an ordinary bloke from an ordinary family, doing right by his own kind. But Starmer has no heartland, no power base. Starmer is nobody’s “our Keir”.
Burnham describes his “Manchesterism” as a form of business-friendly socialism that seeks to retake public control of all essential services, from housing to transport, in order to make life “doable” for those trapped in the insecure world of Britain’s outsourced Serco economy. Most important of all, in Burnham’s view, is reclaiming public control of housing. “To me, if you’ve not got control of housing, you’ve not got control of the costs the country is facing.” Not only is public control of the essentials necessary to drive down costs for ordinary people, it is also necessary to drive down costs for the state. “When you’ve lost control of housing, energy, water, rail, buses, you’ve lost control of the basics of life, but you’ve also then lost control of costs and public spending.”
The point, Burnham says, is that “it can’t be just a changing of the guard: you have got to change the whole culture and… are people up for that?” Burnham is offering something far more radical than a change of leadership. He wants a change in direction and a wholesale change in personnel: a northern takeover.
We're done
He gave this interview on the Eve of their convention so his intentions are clear
“...a form of business-friendly socialism that seeks to retake public control of all essential services...”
And the Brits think they have it bad now. Just watch when they go fully socialist (another word for communism). The USA should let them sink into the abyss. Let them suffer for the choices they make. It’s going to be the end of the world for the United Kingdom, and I feel fine. /spit
It’s very concerning this is the best they have
What a novel idea, shame it's never been tried before....
To say nothing of the NHS.
Harold Wilson tried this in the post-WWII era. Didn’t go well. Margaret Thatcher undid some of his work but she was not appreciated for it.
She won three consecutive terms.
Somebody appreciated her.
After a while people just get tired of good times.
People just assume “good times” are now baked in and “socialist magic” starts to have appeal
Exactly.
After 10 years you have a new electorate.
Enough of the older and wiser have died off, and enough the younger and foolish generation have reached voting age to change the election results.
THIS IS LIKE TRYING TO WARN THE TITANIC
THEIR SHIP HAS SAILED-—WITH AVERY DELIBERATE MOTIONS OF FAILURE
One sure thing you can say about leftists. Whatever failed leftist is currently in power the one they replace him with will ALWAYS be worse.
The Brits already tried this after WW-II when Clement Atlee’s government nationalized certain British industries including railroads and coal mines and continued war time rationing for almost a decade after the war ended. These measures were an economic disaster especially the coal mines resulting in massive subsidies. Margaret Thatcher finally ended government ownership of major industries. Isn’t the definition of insanity doing the same things over and expecting different results?
Even Reform UK wants to Nationaloze Steele!
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