Burnham plots course for Coalition of Chaos: Starmer rival calls on Left to unite towards Reform
Andy Burnham suggested on Wednesday that Left-wing parties should ‘work together’ to combat the rise of Reform UK – fuelling fears of a Coalition of Chaos.
The Mayor of Greater Manchester said he was concerned about the rise of ‘fringe parties’.
Mr Burnham’s comments will add to concerns that Labour, the Greens, the Lib Dems, Plaid Cymru and the SNP could join forces to fight Reform UK at the next election.
It comes after a poll put Zack Polanski’s Green Party in second place nationally – ahead of Labour – prompting Reform to warn that the possibility of a Left-wing coalition had to be ‘taken seriously’.
In his first comments since Labour lost the Gorton and Denton by-election last Thursday, Mr Burnham said the result demonstrated the ‘chasm’ between Westminster and the public.
And in what will be seen as a swipe at Sir Keir Starmer – who blocked him from standing in the contest – the mayor lamented the absence of ‘big figures’ at Westminster.
Referring to his book Head North, ‘about leaving Westminster and establishing devolution across England’, he joked: ‘The sequel, Head South, is currently on hold.’
Addressing Labour’s defeat to the Greens at an event hosted by the Centre For Cities think-tank in London on Wednesday, Mr Burnham said: ‘The time has most definitely come for a serious conversation about our political system and its pervading culture.’
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham wants to unite the left and formulate a Coalition of Chaos
He said the by-election ‘revealed the full depth of the chasm between people and Westminster politics’.
Asked if he was concerned about the ‘rise of fringe parties’, Mr Burnham said he worried about a politics that ‘wants to pit people against each other’.
He added: ‘I’ll fight against that politics, because it is going to try and break… collaboration.
‘It realises there’s votes to be had in simple populism, pitting Rochdale against Oldham. That is what it will try and do – divide.’
He said such an outcome was a risk at the local elections in May, and parties that believe in collaboration ‘should work together’.
A poll suggested yesterday he would have won in Gorton and Denton had he stood. The More in Common survey found that he was the most popular politician in the constituency across three focus groups held the day after the vote, with both Reform and Green voters putting him top.
Some participants expressed frustration at Sir Keir’s decision to block Mr Burnham – described as a ‘significant own goal’.
