Saturday, 3 October 2026

Consensus Politics - is that possible?


Burnham's basic analysis is:

The country is facing systemic problems. In his opinion caused by:

Deindustrialisation. Deregulation. Privatisation. Austerity. Brexit.

The councillors and MP's who are elected to run the country on behalf of its citizens do not have enough power and control to make a difference in some key areas:
  • Economic control diminished by selling off essentials - water, energy, transport
  • Political control corroded by the hollowing out of councils - diminishing government grants and restrictions on how much council tax they can raise has led to councils outsourcing services to the private sector which is not in control of voters.
  • Immigration control weakened by Brexit - loss of the Dublin Agreement

He wants to fix:

  • Housing - not enough council housing - problem of buying first home
  • Water supply - water companies need tighter regulation
  • Education/Youth Unemployment - need for much better preparation for a working life.
  • Adult Care System - need for a National Care System
  • Energy supply - move towards self-sufficiency in electricity generation
  • Closer relationship with Europe - will explore options..."I will see if we can find consensus around one which will give us clarity about our position, and the future of the continent we live in."
  • The political system - too centred on point scoring. There needs to be a shift towards consensus politics so that change of government does not affect agreed policies. 
  • Driving power out of Whitehall and into every postcode of Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England and closing divides between people and places.
  • Electoral reform - every vote to count - will be in Labour's next manifesto. Will seek cross-party agreement on a proportional voting system so number of seats in parliament  is more in proportion to number of votes cast.

A 10 year project.

Later this year, we will publish our plan for Britain and set out how, over 10 years, we will make this country work for you again.

I will work as hard as I can to get as much cross-party support for our plan for Britain.

The next election will be fought under FPTP and is 3 years away. How can Burnham generate enough change to convince a
sceptical electorate to give him another term?


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