Andy Burnham will be the next prime minister – here’s what that could mean for Britain

Andy Burnham is set to become Britain’s next prime minister in just days’ time after replacing Sir Keir Starmer as Labor leader on Friday.

There are now growing questions about what Britain might look like under a Burnham premiership as she continues to outline her political vision for Britain.

The former mayor of Manchester pitched his campaign for Makerfield in June not just to get residents the vote, but to “change the Labor Party” by running the country at the highest level.

In a landmark speech in Manchester last month, Mr Burnham said: “In keeping with the motto of this city, I will do things differently. I will break away from the more-of-the-same approach that got us here.”

“I will give Britain the circuit breaker it needs by building more collaborative politics at Westminster, decentralizing power and putting it in the hands of the people and places that can best use it, and in doing so creating a new sense of agency, possibility and hope across the country.

“We’re going to make politics work for you and where you live. I know it can be done, because we’ve done it here.”

Here’s what his rise to number 10 means for the country:

Bringing Manchesterism to Westminster

At the heart of Mr Burnham’s plan for Britain is “Manchesterism”, a political vision that briefly combines elements of devolution and public control.

Drawing on his time as mayor, Mr Burnham called for greater power and funding decisions to be given to regional leaders who are best placed to understand the needs of their communities.

It is characterized by the city’s successful “Bee Network”. Ownership of the infrastructure was taken from several private companies in the development of the plan, which included bus and tram routes across the city, in a move that gave local decision-makers full control.

Manchesterism was recently detailed in an article by Mathew Lawrence, director of the Common Wealth think tank whose ideas appear to have been influential on Mr Burnham and his team.

he said Independent: “There was a deregulated, fragmented bus service with prices soaring, services falling and being transferred back to public control rather than ownership.

“[This] has seen fares drop by 15 percent, passenger numbers increase, quality improve… If you can all catch the same bus with the same schedule, open to the public in terms of branding, spirit and ethos, that is an engine of solidarity.”

Devolution revolution

Mr Burnham noted that the Manchesterism approach could be extended to a national level, both through greater control of public services and centralization of political decision-making. In fact, the latter means that some decisions are taken from Westminster and councils and combined authorities are “given control power”. [they] need”.

Speaking to Channel 4 News last month, Mr Burnham said Britain’s “deindustrialization and privatization” had left areas such as Makerfield “deprived of good jobs and people unable to afford basic needs”.

He said: “We need a completely different path. What is that path? Put more things under stronger public control: energy, housing, water, transport.

“I did this on buses in Greater Manchester. I was the first to do it. Margaret Thatcher deregulated them… and then they just worked for private shareholders, not the paying public.”

“I brought them back under public control with £2 charges, so you take that principle and apply it to energy and water, and that’s what I think we need to do.”

So how do you take this idea to the national stage? Mr Lawrence said the answer was “pragmatic, but ordinary people, businesses and communities are asking ‘how do you rationalize the provision of everyday basic infrastructure?’ He believes that it is an evaluation regarding the question.

He adds: “Taking back control of basic needs… Some of this could be a franchise model, some of it could be an ownership model, to offer affordable prices and fix some of the disruptions on the supply side.

“It’s certainly not straight-forward Whitehall-driven expropriation. It’s the exact opposite of the approach. It’s saying, in part, that you need to fix some of these core sectors to give people dignity and security and provide affordability.”

The surest sign of Mr Burnham’s commitment to this model is his proposal last month to create “No 10 North”, which he described as “the nerve center for a reorganized Britain … the conduit through which we redistribute power and resources across the UK”.

He added that the unit would also oversee “the largest town hall program since the post-war period”.

Economy and taxation

Similarly, Mr Burnham said the UK was committed to ensuring “strong public control and direction” over its investment strategy to stimulate economic growth. Responding to former prime minister Tony Blair’s controversial article last month, he said Manchester’s growth “does not happen by leaving things to the market”.

Elsewhere, the new Makerfield MP said he would stick to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ fiscal rules designed to reduce the government’s debt levels.

On tax, Mr Burnham also recommitted Labor to not increasing income tax, VAT or national insurance in this parliament. But he said earlier this month that “there is some room” for movement on the tax.

he said LBC: “If you take business rates for example, I believe there is a case for business rates being higher in warehouses and the big developments we see on the outskirts of our cities could reduce business rates for pubs.”

Other taxation attitudes Mr. Burnham states he holds include:

Brexit

Mr Burnham said he would not try to return Britain to the EU and argued the country would be “stuck in a permanent stalemate if we argue all the time”.

He explained in May: “My view is that Brexit is damaging, but I also believe that the last thing we need to do now is to bring these debates back up.”

In the weeks following Sir Keir’s resignation, the path to No 10 became surprisingly clear for Mr Burnham. Former health secretary Wes Streeting’s surprise support in June means he is the only challenger to receive the required number of nominations and will therefore rise to power unopposed.

The rapid turn of events meant that he was to become leader of the Labor Party on Friday, July 17, and be invited by the King to take over as prime minister the following Monday.

It may seem sudden, but the decision to set out his political vision in such detail over the last few months shows that Mr Burnham’s pitch to Labor MPs, members and the country has been a long time in the making.