To think Andy Burnham is smug?

[Lyra25]

To think Andy Burnham is smug and presumptuous. Just that really and I have no particular political preference, disillusioned with the lot!

And so it begins….. I give it 18 months before he’s “the most hated prime minister in living memory” and there are demands for the next mug to step up.

FFS

Jesus fucking Christ! Stop the insults. Smug, not very bright, a scarecrow, give the man a chance FFS.

The Greater Manchester ULEZ zone was mandated by the UK government in 2019

It was a legally binding directive from central government (Tories back then) that covered all 10 GM authorities

Pre-Covid a charging model was designed, which would charge non-compliant vehicles

We then had Covid, and the scheme was paused as the economy had changed

There then followed somewhat of a standoff from goverment, as The Mayoral authority needed to get them to drop the legal directive and support the new cleaner air scheme.

The scheme was then redesigned to a clean air scheme, which had delivers electric buses, integrated public transport, a great ANPR network, and the continued electrification of public vehicles.

The RW media would (of course) have you believe it was Burham’s idea in the first place (it wasn’t) and that the money has been pissed up the wall (it’s not). This was a central goverment directive that the Mayor was obliged to enact.

Smug and egotistical. The absolute arrogance of thinking he can just swan in and become leader without a contest. And yet, unfortunately he’s managed it

Yet that happened all the time with Liz, Rishi etc. Don't remember all this drama and cries for a GE.

OP is this a thread to allow you to make every simplistic, ignorant political point you can. Like a competition?
Is he smug? Who cares? Is he intelligent, principled, politically pragmatic- these are the questions that matter.
Yes, he has been elected. We live in a parliamentary democracy, go an look at some of the 1 million other threads where this is discussed.
You want to stop infighting and have more collaboration and your title is an insult to AB for being ‘smug’. Yeah, insulting people the best way to start collaboration.
It would seem you are struggling to put two coherent thoughts together. Do better.

Like Theresa May, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak you mean?

@midwalker he wasn’t arrogant he was correct. He understands the political system we have in the U.K. - unlike you. On the whole I’m quite glad our potential PM has more understanding than some MN posters.

@Lyra25please go away and educate yourself on the country you live in and how it is governed. You’re making a tit of yourself.

He's a back-stabbing weasel. Not someone I want as PM.

@GreenleavesandsunshineI entirely understand our political system. We vote for a party, not a leader. There is nothing wrong per se with having yet another leader, apart from the fact that being on our 7th PM in a decade has been incredibly destabilising for the country. This revolving door of PMs does not seem to be replicated in any other country with a parliamentary democracy, and enough is enough.

A very balanced view of him as a politician there 🙄

@Greenleavesandsunshine I am talking about the fact that he seems to expect to be crowned leader and PM without even a leadership contest within the party- not a GE.

Reform will win the next GE. That is is now a given. Andy Burnham is being brought in to ensure that Labour are at least the main opposition party.

Not at all. We have had a parade of prime ministers who have been subject to media scrutiny like never before. It’s destabilising the country

I love him. Work in Manchester and he’s done an incredible job, he’s very very popular here.

Boris was very very popular as London mayor.

It's not hard to be popular as mayor, you don't usually have to make very difficult decisions that piss a lot of people off.

I think you’ll find that, unfortunately, politics has turned into a massive popularity game and that a lot of voters approach it simplistically, whether you like it or not. It is also turned into a farce by the media. Ed Miliband is a good example of that, back stabbed his brother and ate a bacon sandwich the wrong way.

Heh heh. Sorry. I couldn’t resist. The comment about labour leaders being white was so utterly puerile. All that ‘give the talentless a leg up for the sake of box ticking DEI’ is so detrimental in every way, I had to send it up. Apologies to your blood pressure.

@midwalker No we don’t vote for a party. You vote for your MP, the person NOT the party. That’s why MPs can cross the floor with no by election. Voters need to understand who their MP is as some votes are not whipped, like assisted dying. Some MPs vote against their party or may have a different opinion on a key issue like Rosie Duffield for example.
Other countries do have frequent changes of PM or government, Italy being the most famous although Bulgaria comes close. Other European countries have continuity of PM with a changing government. What is clear is the U.K. needs to understand no PM from any party is going to solve our problems in 5 years with no pain. It’s going to hurt and it’s going to take time.

I do! I really like Burnham I think he will be great 😊

He is a bit smug but have you ever met a politician that wasn’t?

FWIW I worked for him although not directly and I think he’s OK and does have people’s best interests in mind.

Isn’t that reverse racism?

@Lyra25 Yes you are correct politics has turned into a popularity contest and people approach it simplistically. That doesn’t mean they should, that doesn’t mean you should wave your ignorance like a flag, that doesn’t mean it’s right.
People approach it simplistically many of us do our best to point out how the system works, you may have given up but I haven’t.