Ed Miliband is shaping up to be a big problem for Andy Burnham, according to a new analysis. In one respect, it's quite simple: if Burnham were PM, he would send Miliband packing. Burnham would not have him anywhere near his cabinet, calling him a menace. Given all the challenges Britain faces, the country needs practical, hard-headed politicians who can put ideology and ego aside and rebuild Britain—people who act in the national interest rather than riding their own hobby horses to destruction.
Miliband's Menace to Burnham's Pragmatism
Red Ed is the last person you would want in your team, the analysis argues. Andy Burnham has just worked out that Miliband is a menace too, and he is dead right. Ever since Miliband became energy secretary, he has shown how voters dodged a bullet in 2015 when they scorned his bid to become PM. Ed sneakily beat his far more electable brother David to the Labour leadership with union backing, but his campaign ended in disaster after he picked a public fight with a bacon sandwich, and lost. The public saw through him. But his defeat only made Labour activists love him more.
Miliband's Popularity Among Labour Members
Labour activists still adore him today. Incredibly, he is the most popular cabinet member among Labour members, and by a country mile. That will only make life harder for Andy Burnham if, as expected, he ousts Sir Keir Starmer in what increasingly looks like a hard-left coup. Burnham is a pragmatist, but he will not get much done in power if Miliband gets his way.
Miliband does not listen to criticism, and he does not bow to pressure—not from cabinet colleagues and not even his own boss. So he has ploughed on with his net zero transition regardless. Anybody who objects to him destroying the countryside with wind turbines, pylons, and solar panels is dismissed as a Nimby and steamrollered. Businesses crushed by soaring energy costs are ignored, as are households as his levies drive up bills.
North Sea Drilling Ban and Its Consequences
His decision to ban new North Sea oil and gas drilling is the craziest of all, the analysis states. Miliband claims drilling will not cut bills while ignoring the jobs, exports, tax revenues, and balance of payments benefits. He would rather import fuel from Russian dictator Vladimir Putin than exploit the UK's own resources. It is madness.
And increasingly, Burnham wants nothing to do with it. Miliband has spent months pushing to make the King of the North PM. He urged Starmer to stand aside and even stopped taking his calls. He is stabbing the PM in the back, and now he wants Burnham to stick the knife into Chancellor Rachel Reeves too, and hand him control of the Treasury. Chancellor Ed Miliband would be an absolute disaster.
Burnham's Dilemma: Reindustrialisation vs Net Zero
Burnham wants to reindustrialise Britain. Miliband is doing the exact opposite. His net zero crusade will cost the country an absolute fortune, and he would double down if he got his way. And now Burnham has another worry: Miliband will not listen and will not do what he is told. Like anyone exposed to too much Marxism too young, he is convinced he has the answer to everything and is always right. He talks over colleagues who disagree with him. Basically, he is not an easy man to work with.
Burnham is a genial chap and can see what is coming. He will be steamrollered too. So he is sounding out alternatives for chancellor. But it is not that easy. Miliband is popular in the party and desperate to be an even bigger noise in the new regime. He may have stopped answering the phone to Starmer but he is never off the blower to Burnham's team, who have had enough.
Standing Up to Miliband
Standing up to Miliband will not be easy, though. He will not just storm off in a huff. He will start plotting. That is what he does. And he will create a new power base, eager to pounce on the slightest slip by Burnham. Our potential new PM has a tough decision to make, but he had better make it. Otherwise his premiership will be sunk before it has even begun.
