Saturday 10 August 2013

Andy Burnham on the Westminster Bubble

This about sums it up for me:
We're the professional politician generation, aren't we? I was schooled in this, kind of, how do we make a press release today that embarrasses the opposition? That's the kind of politics that everyone was doing, and the kind of culture developed where you're scrabbling over a bit of the centre ground with micro-policies that are designed to just create a little couple of days' headlines and create a feeling, but not change much else.
I think Andy has come the furthest and has grown increasingly in stature since the Labour leadership election three years ago. Perhaps there was more to his 'Aspirational Socialism' than he let on at the time.

His comment on Labour in today's Graun can be read here.

4 comments:

Gary Elsby said...

Burnham has a valid point but I can't see how Miliband and Balls can square it with a Tory 'credibility' spending plan.

Maybe Burnham should undermine the pair of them some more as there will certainly be a Leadership challenge after May 2015.

Phil said...

There will be a change of leadership after 2015 if Labour doesn't win. That seems to be the way now - lose a general election and you're out.

However merging social care and NHS services doesn't have to necessarily be a massive expense, especially as it will yield significant efficiency savings.

Gary Elsby said...

The key to all this is that social workers are either despised or loved.
Hanged for not acting or hanged for acting.
Although we err on the side of caution and give them the benefit of doubt it is not universal.

The NHS does have this universal benefit, even if Stafford did occur.
We trust it emphatically and that can be proven.
The implications of a NHS umbrella for social services is literally quite massive and I will wait to hear arguments against.

Well done to Burnham.
A Labour member speaking out?
Tut tut, he should be expelled.

BTW Phil, my walk away Labour colleagues were never reprimanded for speaking out publicly against Labour MP or Group decisions.
That is allowed and Burnham is doing what all Labour members should be doing.

Phil said...

I agree with you on social workers. The press attacks on them over the years have gone along with the assault on social security. Coincidence?