Andy Burnham’s begin is exceptional however revolution is slower than an Amazon supply
‘In a world where you can get an Amazon delivery within 24 hours, it is hard to explain that revolutionising the bigger challenges of life is more difficult’, former Labour Cabinet minister Lord David Blunkett writes
Lord Blunkett praised the empathy shown by Andy Burnham(Image: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
There is a funny tradition in politics of talking about the “first one hundred days” when anyone new comes into office. On Tuesday, Andy Burnham will have been Prime Minister for just half that time. Yet everyone expects a miracle. Even as a long-standing and close friend, I don’t expect miracles!
What he has done already has been remarkable. He has lifted people’s spirits (at least the people I talk to), provided some hope that we might be able to do things better and that tomorrow will be a considerable improvement on today.
Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch, at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, challenged him rather ineptly, asking, “what have you cut” – referring to public spending. Andy turned this question on its head by responding: “What have I cut? I’ve cut tax”! Game, set and match. He has, of course, cut tax on energy bills; offered help to pubs and music venues; moved part of the Downing Street operation up north and done a pretty good job in just over six weeks at touring the country.
All this and more: visiting Ukraine, welcoming President Macron of France to the opening of the Bayeaux Tapestry exhibition in London and made an incredible stab at sorting out the nightmare of the criminal justice system.
The problems remain just as daunting as ever, but we do have a Prime Minister who can not only communicate but has empathy and an understanding of how people feel and think, and above all, what priorities matter most.
Andy Burnham’s commitment to devolving influence and power out of Westminster and Whitehall is welcome and a step in the right direction. But as he knows very well, it is how people feel in their day to day lives that matters most, and simply moving administration geographically closer will not in itself improve how people feel. That is why the big challenge is one of speed. Turning round the current inertia – not just in public services, but in so many aspects of our lives – a “can’t do” or “can’t be bothered” attitude which undermines early progress and the feel-good factor.
In a world where you can press a button to get an Amazon delivery within 24 hours, it is hard to explain that revolutionising the bigger challenges of life is a tad more difficult! Fortunately, the new prime minister has the ability to explain the time it takes, but not a lot of time to win back the electorate.
By the time those one hundred days have passed, we will have John Healey’s first budget and then the real business: making sure that good intentions can be delivered.
‘Zack Polanski won’t give a straight answer on anything’
Sir Keir Starmer is stepping down from Parliament. His North London seat is going to be contested by the leader of the Green Party – Zack Polanski.
This seat will be a tough one for Labour to hold. But this is the Zack Polanski who once paraded his belief that by hypnosis he could increase the size of women’s breasts. This is the Zack Polanski, who won’t give a straight answer for anything, not least on NATO – which he doesn’t want us to belong to.
I had to smile when he said that he’d moved in and out of Camden over the years. Perhaps on the canal, where for some time, he lived on a boat free of the troublesome council tax that the rest of us pay.
‘Bayeaux Tapestry needs celebrating’
It is a sobering thought to think that I won’t be around for the thousand-year anniversary of the Battle of Hastings. Perhaps it’s necessary to make do with celebrating the work of the Saxon women who created the Bayeaux Tapestry, with all its representations of battle, mayhem and defeat. Let us take some comfort that is 960 years since there was ever a successful invasion. Long may it remain so.
‘Nigel Farage thinks the rules don’t apply to him’
Reform UK have just held their annual conference. The stars of the show were… guess who? Yes, failed ex-Tory cabinet ministers like Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman. Not forgetting Nigel Farage, who thinks that rules on declarations of interest or the rule of law, apply to anyone else, but not to him.
