Nice to see my piece for @mainstreamlabour.bsky.social on how Manchesterism should put people and place first featured in the Future of the Left newsletter.
Newsletter #21: Too Parochial?
It’s the Right’s turn to be out of touch
open.substack.com
Josh Westerling
@joshwesterling.bsky.social
Politics, campaigns, and public affairs at JRF - working on communities and place, and the labour market. Current home Bethnal Green, from Wycombe. West Ham ST holder. Views mine.
Amazing picture in The Times capturing the weirdness of Heatwave
Indeed. It’s just not that deep, you shouldn’t call for your political opponents to be killed, even as an “edgy” joke.
James Austin@jamesdaustin.bsky.social · last wk.There is also the fact that this lad turned up to the Green party's big fundraising rave on Sunday wearing a explicit call for the murder of a political opponent... ... and not only did no one see the issue, they chose to photo him and use his image to promote it. The issues go further than Zack
I think part of what's going on is it landing within a context of wider Gen Z nostalgia (sometimes for not v long ago) + nostalgia being a potent emotional resource within a Labour context specifically?
James Austin@jamesdaustin.bsky.social · 2w agoI find this new bit of Labour aligned content, which is apparently getting traction on TikTok (42k views from what I can see atm, 7k likes) utterly fascinating in its messaging, music and imagery. The fact its resonating is... interesting
For me, what was compelling about Burnham's approach in Greater Manchester was on display the day Josh Simons stepped down - whilst Burnham could not be in the room, the people and organisations he put trust in kept things going. It was a demonstrably different way of doing politics.
A short 🧵on digital content and attention. Yday No.10 was getting stick on X for this 'then and now' video showing the PM and some of the cabinet as children and now in their current position. The kickback was overblown but it does tell you a couple things.
Over the summer Burnham needs to practice an attentional politics and visibly show he stands against vested interests and will take the fight to them. That + his ability to connect with ordinary people needs to be played up as much as poss. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Burnham too influenced by ‘vested interests’ to offer change, Polanski says
Exclusive: Green party launches pushback against idea that next PM will have more left-leaning agenda than Starmer
theguardian.com
Heatwave has made me feel disorientated, like we've arrived in a new England suddenly and now need to grieve and adapt.
Heatwave: disorientation and a new England
Goodbye old England?
open.substack.com
Jonny Ball right to see Burnham as a possible conduit for 'normie populism'
This could be good if done right. Got to be comfortable with risk and not overly stage manage it. Rather than broadcast at people, it should be Andy in conversation with the people, listening and responding to them. Should be a series of long form content to accompany it which can then be clipped.
Burnham plans summer tour of UK to win over voters in Labour ‘danger zones’
Exclusive: Prospective PM wants to give the country a hopeful message, in contrast with Starmer’s early missteps
theguardian.com
Pervert glasses should absolutely be banned. And in the meantime, it should be considered socially unacceptable both to buy them, and to work at Meta.
Sarah O'Connor@sarahoconnorft.ft.com · 4w agoWhen something is so obviously a terrible idea, it is ok to just...say no thanks and ban it. We don't have to wait 15 years and then slowly ban if after a whole bunch of irreperable damage has been done to individuals and society.
I do think this piece is vindicated as a political strategy. That said it also covers the dangers of an approach that optimises only for partisanship. Partisanship can help you shift the distribution in your favour. But policy as fan service will blow up if you’re not strategic on where to use it
Morgan Jones@morganj0nes.bsky.social · last mo.Yes exactly – I come back to this by @demofuturist.bsky.social a lot, about needing partisans who will go to bat for you. But tbh I think fan culture (certainly as I have seen it operate) often makes for ... decidedly mixed partisans. renewal.org.uk/blog/why-lab...
This is absolutely key for me - can see signs Burnham / people and orgs around him get the importance of strong digital comms and a core narrative but focus has (understandably) been on the policy programme meaning that has not yet translated into consistent attentional political practise
Steve Akehurst@steveakehurst.bsky.social · last mo.Caveats, since i know some aren't keen: for sure this is not an impregnable theory. The emotionalism of it (attention grabbing fights, a party’s core story of who they are vs against) matters more than the deliverism. If it devolves into a confetti of transactional retail offers it will fail.
The Great Escape but it’s sung about how we finally liberate ourselves from our national neurosis
I basically think Andy should maintain the ordinary bloke aesthetic as much as possible, and only revert to something more (politically) orthodox when it is respectful and fitting the moment. This does not have to be the generic, often ill fitting, political suit. www.ft.com/content/1260...
What Andy Burnham’s clothes say about his politics
The British prime minister-in-waiting is keen to rewrite the rules of what authentic leadership looks like, starting with his clingy T-shirts
ft.com
Burnham could do something interesting beyond not taking Qs from the lobby
Stokes/Bazball perhaps both demonstrates the case for and against this approach to politics (of which I am inclined to)
Phil Tinline@philtinline.bsky.social · last mo.Yep! I think what the overly literal, data-driven way of politics misses is that if you take a risk and win, you don't just win the election or whatever. You win other, less measurable things: momentum, admiration, uncertainty in your enemies' hearts, etc. You'd think *strategists* would know this.
Yep! I think what the overly literal, data-driven way of politics misses is that if you take a risk and win, you don't just win the election or whatever. You win other, less measurable things: momentum, admiration, uncertainty in your enemies' hearts, etc. You'd think *strategists* would know this.
How to control immigration fairly in polarised times. Put communities in control in making contact & cohesion matter Page 64 of this report www.britishfuture.org/publication/...
Genuine devolution can also be viewed through the lens of new routes for developing political talent, both in terms of politicians but also the advisor class (sidenote: the mayors should be allowed more than one political advisor!).
Interesting nugget demonstrating the risk-taking political instinct that Burnham showed in Makerfield, and implicitly his penchant for a story.
Jessica Elgot@jessicaelgot.bsky.social · last mo.The project that began in the south London club ran through Manchester, Makerfield and now in a borrowed office of a Labour whip in Portcullis House. The secret history, by me and the great @joshhalliday.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
The Times quotes a proReeves source on why Miliband shouldn't be ChEx: "If everyone from the unions to the city are saying they’re concerned, I don’t see how that’s the responsible choice" This catches much that has gone wrong. Letting interest groups tell you what you can't do is not governing.
Trump inadvertently helping Burnham's strategy to win back Lab-Green switchers.
Donald Trump says UK’s Andy Burnham ‘extremely liberal’
US president makes first comments on prospective British prime minister
ft.com
Looking at the fixtures there are actually so many games next season I am very excited for
Devomaxx offers a neat marrying up of place-first + control + power, to Burnham's nascent economic agenda. A strong offer on community ownership would complement this nicely, both in terms of policy and narrative.
Andy Burnham plans devolution blitz ahead of key City of London speech
Likely next prime minister has signalled he wants to draw on Manchester example and shift power away from Westminster
ft.com
I think the Westminster instinct that this is the right thing to do is totally understandable but also a poor fit for the current attention economy, where there is a benefit to taking risks and engaging with people outside of stage-managed settings.
