A growth manifesto for Andy Burnham

23 ways the next PM can end Britain’s multi-decade stagnation

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No British prime minister has presided over sustained economic growth since Tony Blair. Andy Burnham’s challenge will be to buck the trend. If he fails, he won’t be able to deliver on his agenda, and voters will punish Labour, as they have punished successive political leaders since 2007. If he succeeds, he will have the fiscal headroom to transform the country and reap electoral dividends.

Keir Starmer said that growth was his “number one mission”, and his government made real progress on planning and infrastructure, nuclear regulation reform and securing AI investment. But growth has disappointed. Starmer and Reeves failed to back up a pro-growth narrative with meaningful policy reforms, and somehow still managed to get into unnecessary and damaging fights with MPs and other groups. Burnham will need to be smarter: say less, but do more.

Burnham is right that the fundamental problem in Britain’s economy is a lack of regional dynamism. Wealth is hoarded in the South East of England, which has failed to build enough housing, while workers face painfully high living costs. Outside London, our cities and towns are poorly connected, and suffer from ailing infrastructure. Our energy is too expensive, and our markets are dominated by rent-seeking incumbents, who use regulation to shield themselves from technological disruption and competition. Meanwhile, our tax system penalises work, encourages passive wealth accumulation, and is excessively centralised in Whitehall.

The good news is that it is within the government’s power to fix many of these problems, and Burnham has shown that he is up to the task of reforming Whitehall and devolving more powers to regions. Unlike Starmer, he enjoys the luxury of Parliamentary Labour Party support and maybe even a 6-12 month grace period from voters and the media. He should use this while he has it.

Here’s what Burnham should do: