Andy Burnham will admit his goal to raise living standards and “lift Britain back up” could take a decade as he begins to outline his plan for power on Monday.
The likely next prime minister will use a major economic speech to promise the biggest transfer of power out of Whitehall in modern times, including setting up a so-called No 10 in the North of England, as part of plans to “give Britain the circuit-breaker it needs”.
He will also commit to a 10-year mission to raise living standards through reindustrialisation, housing, infrastructure and reform of essential utilities in the address at the People’s History Museum in Manchester, where has spent the last nine years as mayor.
The decade-long timeline suggests Burnham is eyeing up two general election victories as he will have to face a general election by 2029 if, as expected, he takes over the Labour leadership and keys to No 10 from Sir Keir Starmer next month, and another vote five years after that if he wins.
Central to Burnham’s plans is handing over power to England’s regions to deliver “good growth in every postcode”, replacing what he believes is a centralised, top-down model of governing with locally driven growth.
