Why Labour needs to focus on the working class, with Andy Burnham

Electoral Dysfunction

Sky News

News Commentary, Politics, News

4.6 • 659 Ratings

🗓️ 5 June 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Beth is catching up with Andy Burnham - the Mayor of Greater Manchester – in his office for an extra episode this week, recorded on Tuesday.

It’s just days to go until the chancellor unveils her Spending Review, and it’s set to be good news for the North – they are about to get billions for big transport projects. But is that a good enough offer to keep working-class Labour voters interested? Burnham explains why he thinks the government could be doing better to connect with the working classes and how to keep their votes from going to Reform and Nigel Farage.

For him, it’s simple – better technical education and more social housing, something he’s working on with his extra devolved powers. Will he pave the way for national policy?

Also, does he actually want to be the leader of the Labour Party?

Remember, you can also watch us on YouTube!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Now time to thank our partner for this episode The Economist.
0:04.3	Let's be honest, between endless news updates, social media hot takes and a 24-7 information cycle,
0:12.3	it's hard to know what to focus on or who to trust.
0:16.5	But for over 180 years, the economists' high-quality journalism has helped readers cut through the noise and makes sense of the world's most important stories.
0:27.5	One recent example was their reporting in Lincolnshire.
0:30.6	It explored whether the regions become one of the most conservative places in Britain and how local issues have shaped Lincolnshire's
0:39.0	deep-rooted right-wing politics. It's the kind of thoughtful reporting that not only informs
0:45.3	but also empowers. You come away feeling smarter, more confident and better equipped to engage
0:51.9	with complex global issues.
0:58.5	Search for the economist and make sense of the world around you.
1:02.0	What might happen if Russia attacked the UK?
1:04.8	This is clearly an enormous show of force.
1:06.7	It is definitely out of the ordinary.
1:10.9	We ran a war game with former ministers back in the hot seat.
1:11.6	Ben Wallace.
1:12.4	Amber Rudd.
1:12.9	Jack Straw.
1:17.0	It's the kind of war game that's genuinely tested inside government.
1:19.9	The Russians are signalling that there may be an attack.
1:22.4	Russian knows our weaknesses, but do you?
1:25.4	I'm Deborah Haynes from Sky News and Tortus.
1:26.6	This is the war game.
	...

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