Burnham's big plans: on the right track?
Andy Burnham, Britain's likely next prime minister, has set out plans for a major overhaul of the British system of government. They include local authorities being given more control over water supply services and other utilities and measures to tackle the cost-of-living crisis and promote social housing. The media look at whether the strategy could work.
Socialist interventionism
The Daily Telegraph warns:
“Mr Burnham, the prime minister-presumptive, wants to return to an era of mass council house building and one when the state directed the investment decisions of the private sector. He even hinted at renationalising public utilities. He blames the deindustrialisation of the 1980s and 1990s for the country's current woes, without acknowledging that it was during this period that the economy grew and underpinned the prosperity of cities like Manchester. Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979 to undo the damage caused by the very socialist interventionism that Mr Burnham now seeks to revive.”
A vision that could bring the country together
The Guardian is enthusiastic:
“Mr Burnham's speech offers an alternative operating system for the British state in terms of constitutional devolution, state control over pricing, reindustrialisation and a living standards test modelled on Germany's Basic Law. It is also an appealing social-democratic pitch of a secure home and a skilled route into work built on good public infrastructure and local dignity. This, crucially, is a vision that could bring a country together. It is also one in sharp contrast to that offered by those who want to tear Britain apart.”
Progressive populism with no guarantee of success
The Frankfurter Rundschau sums up the contents of Burnham's recent publications and a speech he delivered on Monday:
“In a nutshell, Burnham sees the solution first and foremost in the regionalisation of power – referred to in English as 'devolution', a term everyone there understands. What has already proved beneficial for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland could also be the way forward for England. ... A written constitution, proportional rather than first-past-the-post voting, a Senate of Nations and Regions and a comprehensive, climate-neutral reindustrialisation of the north of England – these would aim to provide additional support for devolution. This may seem too theoretical, too top-down, but Burnham counters this with his approachable, hands-on style. ... Burnham's populism is left-wing in the sense that it is constructive and progressive. That is, of course, no guarantee of success.”