Mailwatch(ed) Forum

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sun Sep 24, 2023 3:15 pm What does he think happens in Birmingham?

It gets shafted by the BBC for a start. He forgets little things like that.

"Gather your shawl and clogs, and just look how tattered and battered the rest of the country is, you aspirational bastard."

Goodness me ...

I suppose he might reasonably point out that Birmingham is getting its HS2 link and nowhere in the North is.

The thing about a bucket of shit is that people remember who spilled it, not who filled it.

It makes perfect sense to me for Burnham, and really anyone in Labour to keep piling the pressure on the Government re: HS2, because it's just such an obvious timebomb it needs to be detonated when it's still in Tory hands.

Don't think anyone disagrees with that. Just think his talking like every not the North is the same is the big irritant with him.

Long thread here on bus deregulation and re-regulation. Key point made that what people expect in Greater Manchester is going to cost a fair bit of new money. Not obvious that it'll be easy for a new Labour Government to provide that. Councils don't have any.

Wouldn't be surprised if Starmer's team have been on to Burnham to tone it down a bit. It's a good policy that'll save some money, but don't get too carried away at this stage.

Time to put him back up the top. Since I posted the last bit, the Bee Network seems to have come on pretty well, so perhaps I was pessimistic.

Well might he do this in Makerfield. I think there's a pretty viable position. even there, that Freedom of Movement remains out (that was of course the Jez position in 2017) but do what you can to help business.

Andy Burnham says Labour must put energy and water under public control
Greater Manchester mayor suggests programme of renationalisation would be key policy if he succeeds Keir Starmer as PM

He doesn't say "denationalization". He talks about control, like his buses which are privately operated.

I put them back under public control with the £2 fares, so you take that principle and apply it to energy and apply to the water – that’s what I think we need to do.

Maybe there's some think tanks thing about greater local control somewhere? Expanding GB Energy? Or maybe he's just going with the flow in the way his critics say.

Talked to my brother today. He wants Burnham and believes that only he's needed, since we need radical change, not tinkering around the edges.

The markets may not be so enamored with radical change as Labour members. And the public may not be particularly enamored with the tax rises.

The Weeping Angel wrote: ↑Sat May 16, 2026 6:42 pm Talked to my brother today. He wants Burnham and believes that only he's needed, since we need radical change, not tinkering around the edges.

That'll go down well...

Rupert Lowe says he's running a candidate in Makerfield. I doubt this will make much difference to the vote, but if Reform don't win you might get a big row on whether Farage lost because he was too nice.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sat May 16, 2026 6:48 pm The markets may not be so enamored with radical change as Labour members. And the public may not be particularly enamored with the tax rises.

His argument is essentially that things are so dire that a state of emergency should be declared, and we should stop pussyfooting around fpor example Starmer shouldd just nationalise and not subject to any public interest. As he puts it Trump who he hates just goes out and does stuff unlike Starmer. The fact that Trump is deeply unpopular is of course neither here or there.

...and Trump doesn't give fuck who wins the next election if it can't be him.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sat May 16, 2026 7:08 pm Rupert Lowe says he's running a candidate in Makerfield.

Will he be shouting at cycle lanes?


R4 was conducting an unscientific lunchtime vox pop in Makerfield and everyone seems to love Andy Burnham. He's slightly less dull than Keir but not much. Why the contrast I don't know, probably because Andy's gets to do popular stuff like more buses.
Burnham's loose tongue isn’t so popular with bond markets.

We've been on the wrong path for 40 years according to Andy.

Yeah, the philosopher king. This is what you say if you don't want to let on that people elsewhere are going to be paying higher taxes for Makerfield.

What has Cornwall, Wales, coastal towns, rural left behinds been getting in the past few decades that Manchester hasn't?
By all means put forward a policy for regional rebalance but Andy's not aiming to be PM for Lancashire. Starting to remember why he lost to Corbyn and Ed M.

He's running in Makerfield, not Redruth, so perhaps we can give him some license for now.

I worry that he's peaking a bit early, but maybe this is what you do with a high profile by-election.

Youngian wrote: ↑Mon May 18, 2026 6:55 pm What has Cornwall, Wales, coastal towns, rural left behinds been getting in the past few decades that Manchester hasn't?
By all means put forward a policy for regional rebalance but Andy's not aiming to be PM for Lancashire. Starting to remember why he lost to Corbyn and Ed M.

Don't expect being "King of the North" to play well anywhere outside the North and, if you set yourself in opposition to a particular region (eg London) don't be surprised if that region fails to genuflect in your direction.