Andy Burnham

‘WESTMINSTER has not been working for people,” declared Andy Burnham in his first major policy speech since Keir Starmer’s resignation.

My definition of success is a clear majority of the people, more than right now, feeling hopeful about the future.

I promised to devolve deeper down in Wales.

I will speak soon to the first ministers of all three countries to agree a positive way of working to this end.

I would like to be as collaborative and pragmatic as possible with the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

In Wales, that feeling has its own shape. It is felt in Merthyr. It is felt in Rhyl. Port Talbot feels it. It is felt in towns like Wrexham, communities like the Valleys, and places that have waited too long for politics to work for them.

When governments try to control these costs by freezing Local Housing Allowance, it makes families homeless and places unfunded pressures on councils when they have to pay for temporary accommodation.

The UK faces an “explosive” rise in the country’s national debt.

Online giants should contribute more through higher taxation of large warehouses

There is “room for movement on tax” within Labour’s manifesto

They (the government) should just be making full amends to everybody, not drawing new dividing lines between people, between parents whose children died under 18 and those over.

I know that new injustices have crept in over the last two years, and the fight needs to be for ever.

It comes from running sound finances, as we have done here in Greater Manchester, which in turn gives businesses the stability and the confidence to invest, increasing their productivity and adoption of new technology.

It comes from having the power at ground level to make a real difference, from a clear shared vision that everyone can understand, and investors can back.

It’s not just a sentimental, political appeal – it’s the truth.

Place-first not party-first

Fair challenge, Kemi - but don’t forget it’s only two weeks since I faced questions from 74,000 members of the public in Makerfield!

I am not willing to consider a second vote.

I’ve been in politics a long time and I’ve never known anything as impactful as the Bee Network.

You go from deregulation to regaining public control, it’s just unbelievable what becomes possible.

We need to safeguard sovereign manufacturing and production capability across the country in critical sectors like steel, defence, energy, food and farming, rather than just being prepared to let it go, as we have sadly done in the past.

I think that would have to be subject to wider review of political funding but my gut feeling would suggest somewhere in the region of £500k

I’m not sure which economists you mean because two very prominent ones, Lord Jim O’Neil and Andy Haldane, have both said that a devolution drive that brings power to all parts of the country could be game-changing when it comes to levels…

I want to free up London with even greater devolved powers so it can go to the next level and maintain its status as the world’s greatest capital city.

I am a strong supporter of electoral reform, partly because I believe it will enable the change to a more collaborative politics, and one that is less about point-scoring and more about problem-solving.