Labour NEC officers have voted by a majority to let Andy Burnham stand as a candidate in the upcoming Makerfield by-election. It’s on…
If Burnham wins in Makerfield, will he go to the polls early? He called for an early election when the Tories churned through their own leaders…
Guido’s Adam Cherry explains more…
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Josh Simons on BBC Radio Manchester, asked if Andy Burnham made him any promises in exchange for giving up his seat:
“There’s some mad chat going around that I’m running for mayor of Manchester now, but I can tell you live right now, I’m not doing that. The first thing I’m going to do is spend some time with my three-week-old son. It’s been a bit of a whirlwind since he was born, and now this. I’m going to spend some time with my wife and my three kids and my newborn son. And most importantly, I’m going to be helping to win this by-election.”
Which is not quite the same thing as saying ‘no’, even if the BBC’s own write-up of the story wrongly claims it is. The Burnham camp first approached Simons earlier this week. He initially turned them down. That changed…
Starmer loyalist Steve Reed’s take on the Rickety Coup:
“I saw the Prime Minister yesterday, yeah. He’s fine. He’s focused on getting on with the job. So am I… I mean it’s not an ideal- It’s not a good week that we’ve just had. Let me put that on the table straight away. It reminds me of what went on under the Conservatives, and I think we need to draw that to a close as quickly as possible…”
Reed learned of Josh Simons’ resignation live on a stage with Michael Gove last night and almost swallowed his own teeth. “It’s not a good week”…
A “very sorry” Starmer has sent his public reply to Streeting after his resignation. No mention of Streeting’s specific criticisms…
Dear Wes,
Thank you for your letter. I am very sorry that you have stepped down from Government. We have worked together for many years and I want to thank you for all your hard work in helping to get us back into Government and for all that you have achieved as Health Secretary.
When we came into Government the NHS was on its knees. Almost two years on, the statistics published today are a result of your work and determination and that of the whole of the NHS. Thanks to the choices we made to stabilise our economy, invest in our public services and reform the NHS, hospital waiting lists have been cut. Patients are now waiting less time for hospital appointments, ambulances are arriving sooner, the NHS is more productive, and people’s experience of healthcare is improving. The NHS is back on its feet.
Alongside these performance improvements, you and your team have set out an ambitious policy agenda. The 10 Year Health Plan will modernise the NHS and wider health system. The Casey Commission and Fair Pay Agreement for adult social care puts us on a path to a National Care Service we can be proud of. Alongside this, the National Cancer Plan, HIV Action Plan, National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation, and Life Sciences Sector Plan are all ambitious pieces of work. The Tobacco and Vapes Act will save lives, and the Mental Health Act will improve lives.
This is the difference a Labour government makes. This is the change we are delivering.
Last week’s local election results were extremely tough. I know many colleagues saw good friends lose seats. Everyone in our party is acutely aware that our opponents are more dangerous than ever before. They are a real threat to the values we care about, to the communities we represent and to the country we love.
It is incumbent on all of us to rise to what I see as a battle for the soul of our nation. As part of that we must deliver on all of the promises we made to the country, including our promise to turn the page on the chaos that was roundly rejected by the British people at the last general election.
I am truly sorry you will no longer be sat at the Cabinet table helping to transform our National Health Service. But I have no doubt you will continue to play an important role in our party for many years to come. I hope we can work together to show that Labour in power can address the problems our opponents exploit, can install hope where they want despair, and can bring people together where they want division.
Labour leadership contender Angela Rayner’s boyfriend has joined a PR whose main clients include cryptocurrency firms. Should be interesting if Rayner enters government again – or leads it…
Ex-Labour MP Sam Tarry has in recent weeks begun work for City of London PR firm NorthPoint Strategy. Its clients include blockchain firm Polygon, the UK Cryptoasset Business Council, and Andreessen Horowitz. Whose often liberal, deregulatory goals run counter to the ideas of most Labour MPs…
Tarry, who penned a diary piece for the New Statesman yesterday, did not mention his new gig in the magazine. The firm on the other hand said:
“We are excited to welcome Sam Tarry as a Senior Advisor at NorthPoint Strategy.
As a former Labour Party MP, Shadow Minister and trade union leader, he has a deep understanding of the inner workings of The Labour Party and the wider political landscape.
An experienced campaigner, Sam has played key roles in Labour leadership campaigns and previously served as President of the Centre for Labour and Social Studies.
We’re thrilled to have Sam on board and look forward to the expertise and perspective he will bring to our clients.”
Labour is taking numerous actions against cryptocurrency and has moved to block crypto donations in a cynical attempt to starve Reform. The PLP is even more rabid than the government…
Tarry is said to brief often for his partner Angela. Rayner’s memorandum to Reeves containing various ‘ideas’ for tax rises, which was leaked to the Telegraph’s Ben Riley-Smith, caused a big row in government. In Tarry’s diary piece he reflects on his podcast, launched in January and still listened to by no one:
“I was chuffed to have got three brilliant guests on the show: Ben Riley-Smith from the Telegraph, the New Statesman’s Tom McTague and the previous, long-standing editor of the Statesman, Jason Cowley (now at the Sunday Times).”
The Guardian has attempted to level its guns at Tarry’s new PR firm before. What will Labour MPs make of Rayner’s man?
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”