Andy Burnham's recent speech, which took aim at Thatcherism and Brexit, has been met with delight by many on the Left, even as right-wing newspapers reacted with outrage. Writing in his column, Brian Reade describes the speech as a long-awaited moment, one he had waited his entire adult life to hear from a Labour leader with genuine conviction.
Burnham's diagnosis of Britain's wrong turns
In the speech, Burnham claimed Britain had taken a series of wrong turns over the past 40 years, leading to "political power being centralised, economic power privatised and the country deindustrialised." He argued this resulted in austerity, inequality, and the hollowing out of large parts of the country, made worse by a self-harming Brexit.
Reade notes that Burnham's critics dismiss his message as mere "vibes," but he argues Burnham is offering both a diagnosis and a solution. He says Burnham is showing that Labour stands for something again, something worth fighting for.
A final shot at relevance
Reade fears this could be Labour's last chance at relevance, pointing to new forces on the Left (the Greens) and the Right (Reform and Restore) that have drawn millions of voters away from the political centre. He warns that if Labour offers nothing but Tory-lite policies for fear of upsetting a media that mostly despises everything it stands for, it will be run down and buried.
Reade concludes that if Burnham fails, then Labour as we know it probably does too, and for millions of ordinary Brits that would be no laughing matter.
