Jul 23, 2026 – 12.00pmThe UK’s 10-year government bond yield rate is now higher than ours, both are worse than those of New Zealand, the US and Germany. There is no more telling a rating of how the world’s finance markets view a government’s competence. Curious that the new British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, whose only mission is to save the Labor Party from electoral defeat, should have announced ending rough sleeping as his first priority, not the economy. The economy would have been easier.As the mayor of Greater Manchester, 10 minutes spent talking to homeless people, or a bit longer reading his own council’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, would have told Andy that homelessness is an apex predator problem; it sits at the top of a pyramid of other social problems. Each one is complicated to solve. Deploying a coordinated strategy requires a thorough makeover of government policy and service delivery. Without that, Burnham’s efforts similarly risk being a bit like our prime minister’s determination to increase housing. A lot of money spent with very little to show for it.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles