Andy Burnham, the Labour politician widely expected to succeed Keir Starmer as the UK’s next prime minister, has pledged to deliver the “biggest change in our lifetimes to the way the country is run” by transferring more powers from Westminster and Whitehall to mayors and local authorities.
Speaking in Manchester in his first major leadership speech, Burnham argued that Britain’s central government is “broken” and announced plans to establish a “No. 10 North” in Manchester to oversee the devolution of powers and resources.
He said Manchester had demonstrated that meaningful change was possible, adding that as mayor he had always put “place first, not party first,” focused on problem-solving rather than point-scoring, and prioritised long-term solutions over short-term politics.
Burnham said those same principles should now be applied across the UK, arguing that Westminster and Whitehall are structured around political conflict and require radical reform. He added that he left government after concluding it was failing the north-west of England.