> Focus on foundational economy rather than a sentimental re-industrialisation > Competition / anti-monopoly policy > Decentralised local experimentation Lots of good sense in this piece

Dani Rodrik@drodrik.bsky.social · 10h ago

My thoughts on where Andy Burnham’s (and the Left’s in general) priorities on the economy should be futureoftheleft.substack.com/p/the-left-m...

High streets as spaces for connection and cohesion. This piece well worth a couple of.minutes of your time

Stephen Frost@sfrost.bsky.social · 5h ago

Over the last few weeks I’ve been out on high streets in Bristol testing the deep listening approach described in Monbiot’s article. Here’s a short blog describing why this matters and what I’ve found: www.bridgesforcommunities.com/2026/08/05/s...

Everyone (on BlueSky at least) is talking about Rewiring the State. Three things that stand out for me: 👀 Break-up and devolution of the QUANGOs 💸 PuFins and local pension funds supporting mayoral Good Growth Funds 🤲 Overhauling performative consultation, bringing public into policymaking process

Rewiring the State – Cabinet Statement (HTML)

gov.uk

Great to have IPPR on board with policy long-advocated by @powertochange.org.uk. All this thinking at the heart of our newly-launched Civic High Street Collective. More here: www.powertochange.org.uk/civic-high-s...

Institute for Public Policy Research@ippr.org · 3w ago

🚨 | NEW BLOG: A new prime minister gets only one chance at a first impression. This new blog from @harryqp.bsky.social & @avneem.bsky.social sets out a blueprint for Andy Burnham’s first 100 days. Read here: www.ippr.org/articles/the...

Interesting to see some of the early figures in the Blue Labour movement (Graeme Cooke, Purnell) taking up central roles in the Burnham administration www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...

Exclusive: Andy Burnham appoints No 10 policy chief

The appointee, Graeme Cooke, is seen as an intellectual ally of James Purnell

newstatesman.com

Kane's voice the cherry on top

Fascinating stuff. Increasingly believe that Steve and Persuasion are doing some of the most interesting work in Westminster.

Steve Akehurst@steveakehurst.bsky.social · last mo.

What might a ‘cost of living populism’ look like & how would it do electorally for Labour/Burnham? Some new research via @persuasionuk.bsky.social TL;DR such a platform boosts Lab’s vote share by 15ppt (!) to 34% in our MRP experiment. This & anti-Reform squeeze is prob their best hope 🧵

One of the most striking things for me, in the course of Burnham's by-election campaign and push for number 10, is the way ownership has shot back up the agenda. This piece is a v good exploration of the implications of this.

Guy Shrubsole@guyshrubsole.bsky.social · last mo.

Why Manchesterism is a politics of land: new blog by me Andy Burnham's 'place first' philosophy opens up questions of land ownership & access - from his support for public ownership & land value tax, to Manchester's history of pioneering the right to roam: righttoroam.substack.com/p/why-manche...

Taken from @mathewlawrence.bsky.social @cmmonwealth.bsky.social's excellent Productive State. An important point on democratic ownership and the way this bakes in outward, rather than only upward, accountability.

Nick Plumb@nickplumb.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Following the by-election I'm in the New Statesman this morning, urging people to dig into the thinking of Miatta Fahnbulleh, one of the central figures around Andy Burnham. I argue that Fahnbullehism is a brand of radical co-operativism, likely to be influential to AB's agenda should he become PM.

Good to see

David Higham@oldtrotter.bsky.social · 2mo ago

There is no way back to rebuilding trust in politics that doesn't run through the idea of community and local government. That's the essence of the revolutionary idea in Manchesterism but needs a lot of work to flesh it out and isn't going to deliver quick results.

🔍 Who is shaping the future of economic reform in the UK? With Andy Burnham's win today in Makerfield, our Director of Policy and Insight @nickplumb.bsky.social reflects in the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social on what this could mean for the communities agenda.

Is Miatta Fahnbulleh the brains behind Burnham?

Fahnbullehism is a philosophy rooted in the co-operative movement

newstatesman.com

Following the by-election I'm in the New Statesman this morning, urging people to dig into the thinking of Miatta Fahnbulleh, one of the central figures around Andy Burnham. I argue that Fahnbullehism is a brand of radical co-operativism, likely to be influential to AB's agenda should he become PM.

Is Miatta Fahnbulleh the brains behind Burnham?

Fahnbullehism is a philosophy rooted in the co-operative movement

newstatesman.com

Pleased to see this initiative coming out of MHCLG. We know that democracy is built and maintained in our communities. Last year in our Closing the Void research, we called for a Democratic Trust Fund. www.gov.uk/government/p...

Democratic Engagement Fund: Prospectus

Information about grant funding for democratic engagement pilots and how eligible civil society organisations operating in England can apply.

gov.uk

Andy Burnham clearly understands the role pubs, shops and social clubs have in our shared life – he’s based his campaign out of one. But while high business rates are part of the declining picture of Britain’s high streets, they're by no means the full picture. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Burnham pledges to review NICs increase and cut business rates for pubs

Labour candidate in Makerfield byelection says party has ‘got it wrong on small businesses’

theguardian.com

I spoke to @edthom.bsky.social for his latest In Depth piece, How the High Street became a window on our political instability. It does a great job of setting out why high streets are such a potent issue, politically. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

How the High Street became a window on our political instability

High Streets have declined in recent years. What does this tell us about the UK?

bbc.co.uk

📣 This morning Nicola Steuer was at Coin Street, hearing Communities Secretary Steve Reed announce plans for a Neighbourhood Guarantee and new Community Power Pilots. Healthy, resilient neighbourhoods with dependable public services start when communities are involved and have the power to lead.

🧵 1/4 High streets are more than shops. They’re civic spaces for culture, learning and connection. 🚨 Today, we publish ‘The high street playbook’, sharing lessons from our Community-Led High Street Innovators programme, and why they matter now. Quick read: buff.ly/FEQKij1 #HighStreets

The new high street playbook: Community-led innovation in action - Power to Change

The 'new high street playbook' shares lessons from our Community-Led High Street Innovators programme, and why they matter now. Connecting real wo ...

powertochange.org.uk

Taken from last year's @powertochange.org.uk @uclpolicylab.bsky.social @right-here.org essay collection. If Burnham does end up PM, and he gets his hands on Westminster power, let's hope those devolutionary tendencies remain.

“When populist parties are the first to seize on the opportunity to supply (mis-)interpretations of local changes, they can realise a first-mover advantage in the market for narratives. In the British context, the radical right has succeeded in tying local decline – even when it was, in fact,

LSE Blogs@lseblogs.bsky.social · 3mo ago

How do empty high streets contribute to support for populist parties in England? And what does that mean for local and national politics? Analysis from @trfetzer.com @prashantgarg.bsky.social @jacobedenhofer.bsky.social for @lsebr.bsky.social in the wake of the Reform surge in the local elections.

Fin's not here, but he's one of the most thoughtful people I follow on LinkedIn. Where Can We Interrupt the Cycle? substack.com/home/post/p-...

This quote really struck a chord: “Nothing good can happen democratically if people have nothing to leave their homes for, and no places to meet when they do.”

Will Davies@will-davies.bsky.social · 3mo ago

My review of Anton Jager's Hyperpolitics appears in the next @lrb.co.uk and is online now www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Another tale of unviability of retail on the high street. But also a tale of this being accelerated by private equity. Claire's controlled by Modella, which also controls TG Jones and Hobbycraft. The dying high street retail chain a perfect way for the PE firm to generate returns, quickly.

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 3mo ago

Claire’s to close remaining UK stores on Tuesday with more than 1,000 job losses

Looks like it's not just government that have been reading our work @powertochange.org.uk. Look forward to seeing the detail of these plans. Growing consensus that a civic high street is the only way forward.

Zack Polanski@zackpolanski.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Always a pleasure to spend time with Hannah Spencer in Manchester. Today launching our three step plan to bring our high streets back to life with: affordable leases for small biz, bringing empty shop fronts back into use, and giving communities a real say in their local areas.

✍️ High streets are the heart of our communities, but many are stuck in decline. We need a fast, agile way for communities to secure empty buildings. @nickplumb.bsky.social explains why a High Street Property Holding Vehicle could be the tool to fix a broken market. Read now 👉 https://bit.ly/4c5dJ3S

Good pamphlet this. In particular, this point from @jeevunsandher.bsky.social, as he makes the case for a community led economy. Civic assets are economic assets. That's why we need policy attention on community ownership, civic high streets.

Fabian Society@thefabians.bsky.social · 4mo ago

How do we defeat populism? The nation Labour governs today is unrecognisable compared to the one two decades ago With essays from @jeevunsandher.bsky.social, @annagelderdmp.bsky.social, @lukemurphy.bsky.social & @andrewlewinmp.bsky.social Common Endeavour explores how to build a stronger Britain

Over the weekend the government announced £301m(!) for High Streets Innovation Partnerships to help communities 'reimagine and revive struggling high streets and make them fit for the future': www.gov.uk/government/n...

High streets revived and children given safe places to play

New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets

gov.uk

"the truth is that community solutions still face too many barriers to getting off the ground. “We can change that by standing up for our values to help fix the housing crisis by bringing communities together to own, manage and shape the housing they want to see."

Alexander Brown@alexofbrown.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Exc: Angela Rayner calls for an increase in community-led and co-operative housing models in fresh intervention. She says: “Fixing the housing crisis will take fresh thinking and more homes built for communities and shaped by communities.” www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

A big day for us @powertochange.org.uk as we publish our 5-year strategy. It sets out the change we want to see in the world and our role - alongside community business and other partners - in bringing this into being. Do have a read.

Power to Change@powertochange.org.uk · 5mo ago

1/8🧵 Community business. The time is now. 💥 Today, we're launching our new strategy: Shaping a future powered by community business. Here's why👇️ buff.ly/ouxif7T

More MPs on the Labour benches putting forward a vision for 21st century civic high streets. @connornaismithmp.bsky.social labourlist.org/2026/03/labo...

Had a great day visiting the fantastic @nudgecommunity.bsky.social with civil servants and @powertochange.org.uk to discuss all things community ownership and high street regeneration. Come for a look around… (🧵)