Andy Burnham Is The PM That Rochdale Needs
In an age of cynicism and toxic social media, there was something very moving and heartfelt in Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation speech on the steps of Downing Street this week.
His tearful tribute to his wife and children was a rare moment of emotion for someone who is a deeply private man.
It was a speech that was dignified, authentic and to the point. To paraphrase Shakespeare, nothing in Sir Keir’s political life became him like the leaving of it.
He was right to underline his many achievements, including taking Labour from the worst defeat in our history to a landslide within just five years.
He was also right to list our achievements over the past two years to make Britain a fairer, stronger place to live.
The fastest economic growth of the G7 group of countries, lower inflation, lower interest rates, lower knife crime, lower illegal immigration, as well as new money to build roads, railways, hospitals and schools. These are the long-term changes we need to get our country back on its feet again.
Making work pay through the minimum wage and new rights to sick pay and bereavement leave. Banning no-fault evictions, lifting half a million kids out of poverty, ending the failed Tory experiment of rail privatisation. More police on the streets, creating more and better apprenticeships – all this is real change that is happening.
Given the appalling state of the broken public services and the broken economy we inherited, it was always going to take time to change the direction of the country.
The PM also made the right call in refusing to support Donald Trump’s reckless war in Iran, a war that is hitting many Rochdalians hard in the pocket.
But unforced errors like means testing winter fuel led to an early loss of trust that was difficult to regain, even though MPs like myself ensured that the policy was ditched within months.
So the Prime Minister was right to acknowledge that it was now time to make way for someone else to accelerate the change that people voted for in 2024.
Andy Burnham is the PM that Rochdale needs and he has my full support in any coming leadership changeover.
The people of Rochdale know Andy well from his time as Greater Manchester Mayor. He has improved our buses, capped fares at £2, given pensioners the £10 annual travel pass and made sure older people and disabled can use their passes round-the-clock and not just after 9.30am
He has provided proper funding for our brave police and firefighters and invested real money in local projects to boost business, such as the soon-to-be opened advanced manufacturing research centre in Kingsway Business Park.
Andy was the first person I turned to when our beloved football club was facing collapse in 2024. He responded to the call by visiting Spotland to meet prospective owners, the Ogden family. I know that his offers of support helped persuade the Ogdens to save the Dale.
Andy’s stunning victory in the Makerfield by-election showed how we can recapture a sense of hope for the future, uniting people around a shared passion to make life better for everyone.
This past week in Parliament, I was honoured to attend an event to mark the 10th anniversary of the murder of the late Jo Cox MP by a far-right extremist.
I believe that an Andy Burnham premiership will be true to Jo’s motto – that we have “more in common than that which divides us” – while ensuring the North is never again neglected by Westminster.