Andy Burnham has always liked to be liked. In his autobiography and manifesto, Head North, he writes that studying at secondary school near Liverpool in the 1980s involved walking a tightrope: trying to be a good student while winning credit with the in-crowd by making the class laugh. As the new leader of a divided country, he is still trying to appeal to opposing interests while establishing his own upbeat brand.
In his first speech outside 10 Downing Street, Burnham said: “Let’s build a new national sense of unity, of common purpose and positivity.” After a post-Brexit decade of angry rightwing politics, Labour infighting and culture wars, his affable, seemingly inclusive politics has strong initial appeal. For the first time in 18 months, Labour is ahead of Reform UK in the polls.
Historical Context of Unity Politics
Labour, as an insecure party, is periodically drawn towards a politics of national unity. The 1997 general election manifesto claimed: “New Labour is the political arm of none other than the British people as a whole.” Yet only its most articulate leaders, such as Tony Blair, Harold Wilson and perhaps now Burnham, have successfully pulled this off.
Unlike Blair in 1997 and Wilson in 1964, Burnham is not launching a fresh Labour project in benign times. Instead, he is trying to rescue a two-year-old administration by promising “a new political model and a new economic model” and “the biggest changes [in Britain] in the last 40 years”. This likely requires challenging many beneficiaries of the old order.
Potential Enemies and Reactions
Enemies may include shareholders of privatised utilities, wealthy owners of under-taxed homes, those who like London’s national dominance, leaders of other parties not wanting Burnham’s “more collaborative” politics, and journalists who prefer reporting on Westminster plots. The hostile reaction from much of the press and other parties to his initial modest proposals hints at the fury to come.
As Gordon Brown, Ed Miliband, Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer all learned, any Labour leadership even fractionally left of Blair is widely presented as a return to the 1970s or the start of a socialist dictatorship. Many voters across parties say they want new governance, but few dare try.
Burnham’s Approach and Background
Burnham’s positivity may be less naive than it seems. As mayor of Greater Manchester and candidate in Makerfield, his can-do air attracted support beyond Labour’s strongholds. Voters notice politicians with zest. At the opening of No 10 North in Manchester, he said: “I think this might be the best day of my life.” Such unguardedness breaks the cautious rules of British politics since the 1990s.
Burnham saw Margaret Thatcher’s impact as a politically conscious teen, served in the Blair government as a junior minister, and spent nine years as mayor away from Westminster. He wrote last week: “I am under no illusions about how hard this is all going to be, but I have a clear plan and I know how to get things done.”
Elements of His Plan
His plan includes a 10-year time span, tight immigration restrictions, increased defence spending, and focus on working class and non-metropolitan Britain – elements familiar from Starmer’s premiership and other failed post-Brexit governments. He appointed John Healey as chancellor, believing he can help achieve the goal of “ending neoliberalism”.
Such appointments could be a cunning ploy: seeking radical ends by moderate means. Or they could show that Burnham’s bold ideas are still outweighed by his instinct not to upset people. But his precisely executed leadership coup has demonstrated a capacity to surprise.
