Charlie Alford

Don’t worry: we get that sinking feeling too when Andy Burnham opens his mouth

Post author:Rachael Swindon
Post published:21 July 2026
Post last modified:21 July 2026

If you’ve ever watched a politician promise you a three-course meal only to hand you a single stale budget-brand biscuit, you will recognise that exact sinking feeling I get whenever Andy Burnham opens his mouth. Andy Burnham: not sensible For years now, he’s been held up as Labour’s great sensible left hope – the man who stood up for the north, who’d take on the Westminster machine, who might just drag the party back to its working-class roots without scaring off anyone who owns more than one house. It’s a great story. It’s also about as believable as a government minister…

Andy Burnham offers milquetoast sop to Palestine. Sadly for him we weren’t born yesterday

Post author:Joe Glenton
Post published:9 July 2026
Post last modified:10 July 2026

Incoming PM Andy Burnham has said the Labour Party got it wrong on Palestine and will fix up. He’s pledged to put more pressure on Israel, including possible bans and sanctions. But is he to be trusted? Burnham told the Guardian: I know many people feel that at the start of Israel’s military action in Gaza my party didn’t get it right and I am sorry about that. The response has too often not been good enough. We need to do better. Adding: We’ve got to do more to put pressure on the Israeli government … Yes, we have taken some…

Labour MPs set out plan to try and push Andy Burnham leftwards

Post author:Ed Sykes
Post published:3 July 2026
Post last modified:4 July 2026

The Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs believes that changing the party’s leader isn’t enough. Instead, it is trying to encourage Andy Burnham (or whoever else becomes the next Labour leader) to pull the party back towards more left-wing positions. In a statement, the MPs criticised the dominant Labour right for ‘chasing Reform voters‘ with right-wing positions. The small minority of 24 left-leaning Labour MPs want “immediate bold steps” that understand the “deep structural changes” Labour should be pushing to “reverse over forty years of neoliberalism“. MP Ian Byrne shared an image of the key changes the Socialist Campaign Group are…

Andy Burnham was funded by director of Gaza genocide-linked arms firm

Post author:Jody McIntyre
Post published:30 June 2026
Post last modified:1 July 2026

Any illusions of Labour Party “change” under Andy Burnham were dispelled last week when he appointed lobbyist, Blairite minister, ex-Labour Friends of Israel chair, and Peter Mandelson’s “boy” James Purnell as his chief of staff. The line from Team Burnham is that Purnell has cut all ties with Flint Global, the lobbying firm he led and held shares in until last week. But it seems that the firm has a history when it comes to conflicts of interest. Flint Global Flint Global’s current Defence Advisory Practice lead, James Clark, was previously outed as being a co-founder of the All Party Parliamentary…

Polanski challenges Andy Burnham on 3 key questions

Post author:Ed Sykes
Post published:23 June 2026
Post last modified:23 June 2026

Green leader Zack Polanski has asked the uninspiring Andy Burnham three key questions as he hopes to take over from callous corporate lackey Keir Starmer as prime minister. Polanski’s three questions for Burnham The questions Polanski hopes the new Labour MP for Makerfield will answer are: Are you willing to tax wealth fairly? Are you willing to bring our water companies and public services into nationalisation and public ownership? And are you willing to bring in proportional representation so we can have a fair voting system and a better politics that represents everybody? But Polanski doesn’t think Burnham has been at…

The more scrutiny Andy Burnham faces, the less popular he gets

Post author:Ed Sykes
Post published:17 June 2026
Post last modified:17 June 2026

The Makerfield by-election has got people around the country talking about Andy Burnham again. And a new poll has shown that, with increasing scrutiny, he’s become a lot less popular. We reckon that’s because he represents the same kind of fence-sitting, corporate politics that gave the UK Keir Starmer. Unsurprising popularity dive Voters tend to view most politicians unfavourably, overall. But Andy Burnham was a rare case before the by-election campaign. Because there were actually more people who viewed him favourably. That has quickly changed in recent weeks, though, with YouGov reporting that his: favourability has declined markedly over the past…