Andy Burnham promises UK a 'circuit breaker' it needs for 'good growth'

Andy Burnham, the UK's PM-in-waiting who looks set to replace Prime Minister Keir Starmer as the next Labour leader, on Monday pledged to give the country the "circuit breaker" it needs for "good growth" in every corner.

In his first major policy speech since returning to Westminster politics after being elected as the member of Parliament for Makerfield in a by-election, the former Mayor of Greater Manchester presented his vision for a model of "Manchesterism" involving greater devolved power for the different regions of England.

The 56-year-old politician, whose leadership challenge and strong support within the governing Labour Party resulted in Starmer announcing his resignation last week, said his devolution plans will shift power out of 10 Downing Street in London to a new "No. 10 North" in northern England.

 

"I am going to give Britain the circuit breaker it needs by building a more collaborative politics in Westminster by taking power out of the centre and putting it in the hands of the people and places who can use it best," said Burnham.

"No. 10 North will be the nerve centre of a rewired Britain. It will be the conduit through which we redistribute power and resources across the UK. It will coordinate all parts of government at national and local level to agree a long-term economic strategy and help all places set new growth ambitions," he said.

Addressing the launch event for the new People's History Museum in Manchester, the Labour leadership hopeful said it had been "a wrench to leave" the city to shift to London as a new MP but he was compelled to do so because the country was "stuck in a rut" due to a "broken" Westminster political system.

"After 10 years of political turbulence since Brexit and 20 years of falling living standards since the 2008 financial crash, Westminster has not been working for people, and it has not been working for a very long time.

"It is time for Whitehall to accept that growth cannot be ordered from the top down. Instead, it can only be nurtured from the bottom up," he said.

Burnham remains the sole candidate and therefore likely to be elected as the new party leader unopposed by mid-July, after Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) formally opens and then closes nominations by July 16.

In his speech, he seemed to indicate plans to contest two following general elections by setting out a 10-year plan.

"Ours will be a 10-year mission to raise living standards across the land. To do this, Number 10 North will support the regions on three clear tasks: reform of essential utilities, reindustrialisation, and the regeneration of places," Burnham said.

With "imagine good growth in every postcode and hope in every heart" as his overarching message, the former Cabinet minister gave no indication of what his top team would like or much detail around foreign policy.

However, he broadly stayed the course on his party's 2024 general election manifesto as he promised to "revitalise" Britain's high streets by cutting business rates for shops and pubs so that they become the "new symbol of Britain's renaissance" as part of a wider vision to "raise living standards".

A message that he will be "running sound finances" helped the Pound Sterling rally in the wake of the speech by Burnham, seen as more Left leaning than his predecessor.

The bond markets also remained steady as he indicated plans to keep within the fiscal rules.