Andy Burnham has plan to return to Westminster ‘within weeks’, allies say
Andy Burnham has a credible plan to return to Westminster “within weeks”, his allies have said, with the Greater Manchester mayor expected to use a byelection fight to set out a new agenda for government.Burnham, who was blocked by Labour’s ruling body from running in February’s Gorton and Denton byelection, has identified several seats where MPs are prepared to step aside for his leadership bid.In a sign that his campaign is more progressed than previously thought, Burnham’s team is understood to have lined up an “impressive” candidate to replace him as Greater Manchester mayor.Allies said he planned to outline a “radical rewiring” of the state in the coming weeks – including sweeping changes to the electoral system and a 10-year growth plan – after a potentially devastating set of elections on 7 May that could end Keir Starmer’s premiership.After a fortnight that left Starmer fighting for his political future over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador, the number of MPs backing Burnham is understood to have grown to far more than the 80 required to challenge the prime minister.
However, his supporters said they hoped to avoid a formal leadership challenge and to engineer a process where Starmer would set out a timetable to stand down soon after next week’s votes for the Scottish and Welsh parliaments and councils across England,MPs have discussed the possibility of Burnham offering Starmer the chance to stay on as foreign secretary and continue work on the Iran war and Ukraine,Ed Miliband and Angela Rayner, another leadership rival, are expected to be offered top jobs in a Burnham government,Burnham, who has made a series of policy speeches at ideologically aligned thinktanks in recent weeks, is said to be preparing an explicit programme for government that would be announced at a prospective parliamentary byelection campaign,Several possible seats have been identified in Greater Manchester and Merseyside.
Pledges backed by Burnham, a former health secretary, include introducing proportional representation across the UK, a 10-year plan for local services and an overhaul of inheritance tax to pay for the social care system.It is understood that an “impressive” candidate, who is not a sitting MP, has been lined up to contest the mayoral election that would be triggered if he is allowed to stand for a parliamentary seat.Bev Craig, the leader of Manchester city council, is seen as the frontrunner and has not ruled herself out of a contest.Craig declined to comment when contacted by the Guardian.Backers of other potential leadership challengers – Wes Streeting and Rayner – are both said to have 80 MPs willing to back their candidates for an immediate challenge to Starmer.
But Burnham supporters said they hoped to convince the prime minister of the need for a more stable transition – rather than a bloody leadership contest – which would give the man dubbed “the king of the north” time to return.“There are very strong possibilities of this happening within weeks but certainly months and over the summer,” one Burnham ally said.Starmer is highly unlikely to play any part in facilitating Burnham’s return, and the two are not on good terms.Members of Labour’s national executive committee – which blocked Burnham from standing in Gorton and Denton – told the Guardian there was no route for the mayor through that committee.Some allies of Burnham are believed to have been attempting to convince union general secretaries to change their views, with Unison the key target.
Others, such as GMB, have ruled out supporting Burnham because of his closeness with Miliband, who is at odds with the union over oil and gas licences.One Burnham ally said: “He’s just so obviously the person best placed to turn the Labour party around.“He has popularity in terms of polling, in terms of personality and a plan – that will become more evident the other side of 7 May, when there will be more depth about how do you replicate and scale Manchesterism across the country.There will be a broader policy plan that will come out the other side [of the elections].”But one MP backing Burnham said there was a lack of coordination between the disparate groups who might back him, including impatient modernisers and “red wall” or Blue Labour MPs.
“Andy’s big potential lies in the coalitions he can build,” another MP said.“His test will be whether he can build beyond a core of [the soft-left] Tribune group, who really don’t want Angela [Rayner].“That kind of coalescing is what we need to show we’re different from the Tories, we don’t descend into months of bloodletting and chaos.”One MP on the right of the party said: “I could get behind Andy but I need to know from him why someone like me should back him.”Elections to the national executive committee, which some in Westminster have speculated could move things in Burnham’s favour, will not take effect until after Labour conference in the autumn and are unlikely to upset the balance significantly.
New polling suggests that just one in 10 voters believe Starmer should stay as prime minister after the May elections, if predictions are right that the party will lose more than 1,850 councillors – 75% of the seats it is defending.The polling from Portland found Burnham was seen as the politician most likely to be “strong and decisive”, competent at getting things done and genuinely understanding the lives of ordinary people.But the poll found people favoured Starmer as the politician with a more clear vision of the country and someone honest about trade-offs.The scores for each politician, however, were extremely low compared to the numbers polled who picked “none”.
Octopus Energy boss: some people would accept blackouts if bills cut
The boss of the UK’s biggest energy supplier has suggested that some households would accept an occasional electricity blackout in exchange for much lower energy bills.A year on from Europe’s largest power outage – which left tens of millions of people in Spain and Portugal without trains, metros, traffic lights, ATMs, phone connections and internet access – the chief executive of Octopus Energy argued against costly investments in the UK’s power grid that are adding to household bills.Greg Jackson told an industry conference that many households in Spain, where Octopus Energy has a growing business, would say they were happy to accept “the odd blackout” in return for electricity costs that are 25% lower.“To be really clear, I’m not advocating for blackouts, but if you asked Spanish consumers, ‘would you accept the odd blackout in return for electricity costs that are 25% lower, or don’t have spikes, or a more reliable economy?’ enough of them would say yes,” he said.People would be “far less bothered” about a blackout now than they might have been in the past, Jackson added, because they could continue watching things on their laptop during a power outage
Spirit Airlines prepares to cease operations amid financial struggles and high oil prices
Spirit Airlines is preparing to cease operations after the beleaguered company ran out of cash and a rescue attempt by the Trump administration appeared to stall.The company struggled to make a deal with its creditors and secure funding to maintain operations, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter.Four people familiar with the matter confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that Spirit was preparing to cease operations after hitting an impasse in talks with some creditors on a $500m government bailout plan.Two of the sources said government officials expect Spirit to cease operations around 3am ET (0700 GMT) on Saturday, but emphasized that it could change. They added the Spirit board was meeting on Friday to consider shutdown plans
Tim Cook takes victory lap as Apple’s financial results soar past Wall Street expectations
Apple blew past Wall Street expectations in its first earnings report since it announced CEO Tim Cook would be stepping down.Cook shared his thoughts about the leadership transition on Thursday, saying: “There’s no one on this planet I trust more to lead Apple into the future” than incoming CEO John Ternus. Asked by an investor what advice he has given Ternus, Cook said: “Never forget the north star for the company. You know, we’re about making the best products in the world that really enrich other people’s lives.”Ternus spoke briefly, too, praising Cook’s thoughtfulness in financial decision-making and saying: “This is the most exciting time in my 25-year career at Apple to be building products and services
Meta threatens to shut down social networks in New Mexico over child safety court case
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Surrey step up security for visit of Sussex: county cricket, day one – as it happened
Surrey stepped up security at the Oval following the knife attack at Golders Green as off-field decisions took the headlines on day one of round five of the County Championship.In a statement, the club said: “Surrey are in communication with the Met police and will adjust our own security measures in line with the increased threat level. We want to ensure that all staff, spectators and players feel safe and secure.”On the pitch, which last week was a gentle duvet, Sussex were reduced to 92 for seven, thanks largely to Jordan Clark (five for 68). But the tail wagged, and wagged some more, as Fynn Hudson-Prentice thrashed 53 before Jack Carson and Ollie Robinson hit boundary-laden hundreds
‘Acceptance of mediocrity’: Middlesex gaze south enviously with golden years long gone
With their last title a decade ago, young players moving on and coach churn, Middlesex are no longer even the most famous team that call Lord’s homeMiddlesex is unlike every other English county in at least one very important way. It doesn’t actually exist. It was abolished by the London Government Act of 1963, persisted, in dotage, as a postal subdivision, until Royal Mail put it to sleep in 1996. Today, you’ll find it on the tiles of Swiss Cottage Tube station – which are embossed with its badge of three seaxes – the pediment of the Sessions House in Clerkenwell, the mailing addresses of people who just won’t let go, the minutes of Spelthorne council, the titles of three hospitals, a university, assorted sports teams and tournaments, and the cricket club.Those who don’t know any better will tell you English cricket is a country pursuit
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