AIBU to think his speech sounded too parochial for a leader?

[lightseeker]

I listened to Andy Burnham's speech today and all he talked about was devolution to the regions. I mean ok, fine, by all means give that a go. But, do people think he sounds like a national leader? What about international policy - the Middle East or Ukraine? What about sustainable energy transitions? What is his stance on developing closer relations with the EU? What about the economy? What is his global vision? It will take a lot more than building more council houses and giving out free bus passes. AIBU - the man is sounding way too parochial?

Of course, it’s not just about the North - it’s about regional inequality across the country.
Andy Burnham’s speech talked explicitly about giving mayors and local authorities across the country greater responsibility to deliver change.

I quoted the Northern Powerhouse (George Osborne’s phrase) and Levelling Up (Boris Johnson’s) as examples of previous governments airing similar ideas - it seems those ideas are only dismissed as parochial when it’s someone with a Northern accent advocating for them.

Was levelling up policy limited to the north? I must be remembering the Johnson years incorrectly.

It's interesting how one mention of "northern" in a post draws focus...

Indeed.

Fewer than half the towns invited to apply for support from the Towns Fund are in the North.

Honestly I think we need to look at the way we start ripping into whoever is PM or slated to become PM. I know not everyone will like or agree with a leader but it seems the minute someone is in, UK people start ripping them to shreds. So do their parties apparently. It is not good to have unstable leadership.

We are constantly switching people because no one is happy with anything and instead of being proactive and positive about making good change, it just becomes a shark tank of bitter, petty bitching.

This country (and culture) needs to have more of a long term view and we need to stop eating our own. Time and stability is needed to improve things. Nothing happens quickly but as soon as things don't immediately change, the cries come of 'off with his/her head!'.

I don't like everything about Labour (or any party) and I am not 100% on board with everything Burnham says but that is what we have and I will suck it up because we must present a strong, stable face to the world, particularly right now.

You're easily pleased then.

I think most people would understand conversations around levelling up to be about the North yes.

And since posts are all about it no surprise if people mention it.

If so it would be good to hear him and others mention the other parts of the country then.
I still dislike the idea of devolution to local authorities regardless of where they are.

Did you listen to the speech?! He literally said:

The whole country suffers when the regions and nations are not meeting their potential, and Londoners are left with an overheated economy and an overcrowded housing market.

And, speaking of No 10 North he explicitly said:

Its job would be to make power flow into the Midlands, into the South West, into the east of England and, yes, into London.

Its absolutely fine to have questions about both the practicalities and the principle of devolution, but it is simply factually incorrect to pretend he only mentioned the North.

That's incredibly interesting, given the actual policies around the levelling up push.

What evidence do you have that you think it's perceived by others largely/exclusively about the North?

Or if it's just your feeling - why do you think it's what you hear when people talk about levelling up regions or devolving power?

I ask as a Londoner who's honestly fascinated, and as someone who's experienced less centralised systems and sees the advantages.

Sorry just catching up. Can someone outline what he's done in Manchester? I heard he improved the bus network and made it free (?) and something about football season tickets? I haven't been to Manchester in a long time. But also, haven't most major cities had total overhauls of their centres - look at Liverpool with the L1 shopping centre and the Albert Dock renovation.

Personally I think it would be great if northern cities are thriving - it's a win win for everyone. A nation in which people can't see opportunity around them only ushers in the mentality and politics of Reform. So I hope AB can 'level up' and destroy Reform that way. Where is the money coming from though? What about smaller cities and towns or rural communities that are nothing like Manchester?

To take your question in good faith -

Over the past decade, Manchester city-region has had annual growth more than double the rate of the country as a whole, and has attracted more foreign investment than any other UK region outside the capital.

There is the renationalisation of bus routes across Greater Manchester, as well as support to cap fares at £2 at a time when nationally they were rising.

Andy Burnham also championed the Greater Manchester Town of Culture scheme, taking cultural capital beyond the city centre, which I think speaks to his vision for devolution as not just for the big cities: he wasn’t a city centre M.P, he grew up in and represented a small town and I do believe those places matter to him.

This article gives a good overview: https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/andy-burnhams-greatest-memorable-moments-33295467.amp

His tenure hasn’t been perfect, but he’s genuinely incredibly well liked and respected in the region - unusually so for a politician!!

For starters, Manchester has the highest growth in GVA of any major UK city over the last five years, by quite a significant margin.

I didn't really believe Southern snobbery re the north really actually existed.
But since the Burnham thing, I now realise I have bern very wrong

What?

Really? It's very common on here. Any time people mention affordable property prices, there's endless comments about how it must be a shit hole, with no decent jobs, culture, infrastructure etc etc.

If you have a regional accent, you must be poorly educated and insular.

How it's necessary to live in London/SE, to have any sort of life. Everything is better in London and if you don't agree, it's because you're easily pleased and not very cosmopolitan. It's endemic.

Let's see that will spread across the country. Then it will be worth the celebration. Until then, it's a mayor who has improved a city.

Oh and made some bus drivers very happy.

Indeed. I wasn't clear and should have quoted the lengthy post I was replying to which was OP's "what's he done in Manchester."

His whole pitch is spreading that approach more widely, right?

But the problems of over-centralisation are where you see groups as disparate as the IEA, Res Foundation and IPPR, among many others, come together on agreeing the fundamentals of a problem (though their solutions predictably differ.) I'm hoping for really fundamental rethink of the settlement of powers, because the fragmented multiple approaches we currently run are the worst of all worlds.

Why not? Councils don't have the power or money now to do much and we were talking about much wider areas than council areas.
Devolving power to regions make perfect sense because they are in a much better position to know what is actually needed in their region than Westminster.
The speech yesterday was about his vision for the UK ie domestic policy. You wouldn't expect him to cover foreign policy in that

Every word of this. Even as a Labour supporter, I said the same when Theresa May became PM.

I listened and it was markedly different to the out going PM. It was better in many ways.

I agree and it's an interesting line he is going to follow. The problem is, we don't want it going too much the other way, where there are huge disparities. He's taking a big risk. I will give him that.

Hoping you get a more constructive response to your request for evidence than I did!

The problem that handing power to local mayors and councillors is it creates these people who hold all the power and it does in some cases goes to their heads

We do that anyway, just with different people who have to run much bigger things which they mostly do via local authorities that are much harder to navigate as there's no consistency on who does what.

What do you mean by parochial?