Burnham unopposed & likely to be PM by mid July

I posted this on a different thread re Burnham's potential policies (from the BBC):

Public control of water, energy and transport
Burnham has repeatedly advocated bringing water "back under stronger public control", pointing to the Greater Manchester bus network, which is run by private operators but has public oversight and control, as a model. He has, however, advocated public ownership for companies like Thames Water.
"We do need to bring down water bills, energy bills, rail fares, just as we brought down bus fares in Greater Manchester, to make life more affordable for people," he said in his victory speech after winning the Makerfield seat.
Social care
Burnham has been a long term supporter of reform to social care, dating back to his time as a health minister under Tony Blair in 2006-07 and then health secretary under Gordon Brown in 2009-2010.
He has repeatedly suggested inheritance tax should be replaced with a "national care levy" which, he said in a speech in 2023, would mean the "care [that] is provided is free" and "everybody would pay but obviously the wealthiest would pay the most."
Defence spending
Last week, John Healey resigned as Sir Keir's defence secretary, claiming the draft government proposals would take UK defence spending to 2.68% of GDP by 2030, falling "well short" of the 3% target he considered necessary.
Speaking to the Times a day after Healey's resignation, Burnham said alongside the 10-year approach to defence and security, there needed to be reform of public investment and procurement.
He told the paper that this would reduce the welfare bill by bringing recipients into the workforce, ensuring more money was available for defence.
"I am not squeamish about saying that the plan would be to reduce the welfare bill. Not at all," he said.
Big council home expansion and possible tax reforms
In his campaign launch speech, Burnham said he wanted "the biggest programme of council house building since the Second World War".
He suggested this could be funded by rediverting the existing £39bn affordable housing programme entirely to social rent homes.
Also at his campaign launch, Burnham indicated he wanted to change how business, property and land is taxed, including reforms to what he described as a "highly regressive" council tax.
Burnham has long expressed support for a land value tax (LVT) - an annual tax based solely on the value of the land itself, excluding any buildings or improvements on the property.
Northern leg of HS2 making a comeback?
In an interview with iNews, Burnham said he wanted to resurrect the northern leg of HS2 between Birmingham and Manchester.
Cutting business rates
Burnham has called for a "new drive of re-industrialisation" across the north of England and the rest of the UK.
"It's about time we started backing British business and British industry so we can re-industrialise places like this," he said after winning the seat.
During the by-election campaign, his team sent out a policy document promising a cut in business rates for pubs and music venues by 20%.
That would be paid for, they said, by higher taxes of out-of-town warehouses used by online retailers like Amazon. Burnham also wants to raise the threshold at which business rates kick in, taking lots of small high street shops out of paying altogether.
Education
In his speech after victory in Makerfield, Burnham said he wanted an education system that was not dominated by the university route, but one which "offers a path for everybody, academic and technical in equal balance".
He also said he wanted to secure more work placements for 16 to 18-year-olds and guarantees of apprenticeships.
National Insurance
Burnham told BBC Newsnight he wanted to reconsider the increase in National Insurance paid by employers, brought in by Rachel Reeves in the 2024 Budget.
Waspi women
Burnham was reported to have told a hustings event during the campaign he would "stick by the Waspi women because they deserve some recompense for the unfairness".
But following concern about the cost of such a scheme, a spokesperson clarified that he "accepts the final decision" of the government not to grant compensation.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clywzj2vk3zo

Agree that defence is critical. But it remains to be seen whether he is allowed to enact that policy (assuming he becomes PM) without being torn to shreds by the media and all those who are against cut to welfare. Just from MN threads it is clear that it is a highly emotive issue and Starmer was heavily criticised just for trying to cut the pensioners winter fuel allowance. Many pensioners don't even need that allowance (while some do of course).

This is the trouble with UK politics - people already deciding he is a failure when he was only sworn in as an MP yesterday and the leadership challenge hasn't even started yet apart from a date has been announced.

I would have been happy to stick with Starmer but if that is not to be, think we should at least give the next Labour leader a chance.

Trouble is if he cuts welfare to fund defence he will both attract some voters back from Reform but also lose some to the Lib Dems or Green Party.

Every policy will be unpopular with some. That's why a PM has to have strong convictions about what is the best path for the good of the country.

I think we need to give him a chance - he was only sworn in as an MP yesterday!