Has Andy Burnham ended up as PM somewhat under false pretences?

[Imdunfer]

Please note that this is from a left wing Labour supporting paper.

It turns out that the marvellous redevelopment of Manchester that was the central plank of his credibility to become PM was triggered by the fall of Mubarak in Egypt in 2011 and what were effectively, or previously close to, bribes set up by the then Tory government to retain our massive defence contracts with the Middle East.

The owners of Man City, recently found guilty of breaking well over 100 financial football rules, are heavily involved. UK developers were excluded from access to large development contracts. Man City was sold a deal including the naming rights to the stadium, owned by the council, for £750k a year when professional rights brokers estimate the market value to be between £10m and £15m a year for the name alone.

The question is, did a local Mayor with no experience outside politics and only a tiny amount of experience of cabinet roles, (3 jobs in 3 years), get to be Prime Minister without a challenge on the strength of the development of the centre of his city that he actually only had a small part in creating?

https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2026/oct/25/thats-the-way-the-city-works-how-the-uae-changed-the-face-of-andy-burnhams-manchester

Do you have young children at home, then? Otherwise, why would you have crayons to hand?

I'm not sure why you think I should explain a post I had nothing to do with 🤣🤣🤣

Threads have a life of their own. You give birth to them and start them off well and then they leave your care and can go in any direction they choose. It's the nature of forums.

It wasn't crystal though. If you want to be clever, then can I reasonably suggest that you be so.

It’s your thread, and you will be held responsible!

LOL.

Cool.

Interesting polling, though. Will follow with some other European numbers.

Good to know that you are happy with off topics within the thread. 😴😴😂😂😁🥳🤪

Every country should prioritise its citizens first and then offer excess roles to incomers. There are huge numbers of young people in the UK who will never have the skills/gumption/opportunity to move abroad. The government needs to ensure that these people are able to access work before offering roles to newcomers.

I do think the current state of Europe is very relevant to a discussion about Burnham being brought in as PM under false pretences.

He said during the campaign that got him elected that he would not be reopening the Brexit discussions.

And now he is talking about rejoining and freedom of movement. There is every chance that Makerfield, a big Brexit constituency, would never have elected him if he had said that during the campaign.,

It seems a bit much to talk about current events in a politics topic ;

Especially since Burnham and Labour have resurrected to EU topic and it’s related to that.

X post op, exactly Labour is bringing the issue to the fore. The state of EU countries is relevant.

Here’s Spain’s.

Polling average (latest poll from each of 16 pollsters, last 30 days): PP 32.1%, PSOE 26.4%, Vox 18.9%, Sumar/Broad Front 6.4%. On the pollsters' own seat estimates, PP and Vox reach about 201 of 350 seats together, above the 176 needed for a majority, while PSOE and its 2023 partners sit at about 146.

Grandchildren.

Burnham didn't need to campaign to become Prime Minister.

I don’t see any reason to have any confidence in AB. He has failed to hold down or achieve anything in any cabinet position, has no background in making necessary but difficult decisions (and this is showing in his time as PM so far) . He seems to have sailed by on charm and being able, as Mayor, to bring in investment without having to make any of the hard decisions that are reserved to Westminster.

I don’t want a PM whose sole talent appears to be the ability to market himself well.

And what a shocking statement on the absence of quality and talent in the PLP that, despite their huge number of MPs, they had to pressure a sitting MP to resign to enable someone who was not a member of the PLP ti become PM.

I’m not hopeful.

You have another 25 countries to go.

Good point.

No, just doing the big three.

Although, it would seem a bit uncharitable to include France right now, given recent events…we all know which way that’s going.

That’s not what the More In Common research in Makerfield found. Beth Rigby did some interviews there and was told the same.

Why does the Guardian persist with their ‘the protests were mostly peaceful’ nonsense?

Tell that to the shopkeepers who have had their stores vandalised and looted. Tell that to the police who have had Molotov cocktails hurled at them.

I've never had any faith in the opposition leader KB. She failed to hold down any misinsterial roles when in Government. Became leader against the traitorous Jenrick and is leader of a shadow cabinet and Parliamentary Party that has experienced the worst losses of seats in Tory history.

Her attack dog attitude is about as convincing as a damp squib. She has nothing to bring to the table except the same old tired nonsense. There's no verve, no exuberance and certainly no novel moves.

🤣

Hmmm, looks like a move to the Right...

Ik really awful to see. Probably because acknowledging the difficulties there will make it harder for Burnham and co to sell in re-joining or FoM.

What I find odd about Burnham’s EU love in is, even a cursory look at Europe’s stagnant economies is enough to tell you how its a very different scenario compared to ten years ago.

The US has many flaws, but it doesn’t request handouts. The global economic order is meanwhile being written in the Pacific, and there’s no two ways about. Either build trading relations with the economies that matter or be left behind with the rest of the stagnant Old World.

At least she didn’t have to try to be third time lucky to be elected leader of her party.

Nice.

You must love spending time with them.