Am I just being impatient and mean? New PM

I live in the North West of England. I don’t support Burnham’s ‘No 10 of the North’.

He clearly feels more ‘at home’ and confident in Manchester - it’s his comfort zone. He clearly doesn’t like Westminster - perhaps he feels he doesn’t fit in there?

But he’s the PM of the UK now - he’s got his dream job. Time to move out of your comfort zone Burnham!

Wyllow3

He's moved into Number 10, but his constituency is in Manchester.

So he'd be travelling there anyway. Just over 2 hours on the train, right into central Manchester near where they met.

We don't say that No 10 "treads on the toes" of London's Mayor, do we? Different roles.

His constituency is in Greater Manchester but I think it may really be closer to Liverpool.

However I do think it's a mistake for him to have a no10 of the north in Manchester.
It really should be further north. in the north.

He can play this until September but there is only so much that can be done in regional offices. Once Parliament resumes, he will have to accept that much of the day-to-day work is cross party and carried out in committees in Westminster. MPs need to be in Parliament to take part in debates and divisions.

Friday is traditionally the day that MPs should spend in their constituencies, unless Private Members Bills are being debated on the Fridays set aside of that.

It isn’t all about London but neither is it all about Manchester or indeed England.

I can’t work out which are spoof videos on social media and which are actual government ones. Is this being aimed at potential 16 year old voters? I mean, I don’t actually care which are Burnhams favourite albums of all time.

I haven't seen any social media videos.
Where are they?

Think you’re being a bit harsh. I thought Starmer would help the ones that needed it never mind daft id badges! Give Andy a chance think he’s done more in one week than Starmer did when he first started, give him a chance.

NotSpaghetti

I haven't seen any social media videos.
Where are they?

He has accounts on TikTok and Instagram.

I’ve seen his stuff on Instagram … cringeworthy!

Trying too hard to be cool; name dropping “Oo, I must give that gold disc on the wall back to Johnny Marr”; pulling pints; driving a bus; telling us he does DJ sets (if you need to tell us, we really don’t need to know).

It’s all got David Brent vibes … except it’s real.

He’s like an embarrassing dad trying to impress his teenager’s friends … except he’s the Prime Minister of the UK.

Not for me thanks!

I am trying very hard not to criticise our new

He is trying to show that he is a man of the people and a cool cat. But, we have yet to see him on the world stage, something KS was very good at.

I shall wait to see if AB can be diplomatic when dealing with the current POTUS and other world leaders…

I doubt he is aiming his Instagram account at grans? It would be interesting to get the view on his social media presence from his target audience.

I’m not Burnham’s biggest fan, but I do think some of the criticism on here is petty and is far fetched, surely what we should be judging him on is what he actually does for the country, not this peripheral stuff?

Just an observation, but why is the bus fare cap £1.75 for London, and £2.00 for everywhere else?

It’s little things like that which suggests ‘North and South’.

If his target audience is Mumsnet … very little love for him on there. Although I suspect he’s trying to appeal to an even younger demographic.

I don’t mind if I’m an outlier in my opinion of AB - if it’s deemed ‘petty’, so be it.

It’s still my opinion and I’m certainly not trying to change anyone else’s POV. Just saying what I think🤷‍♀️

Calendargirl

Just an observation, but why is the bus fare cap £1.75 for London, and £2.00 for everywhere else?

It’s little things like that which suggests ‘North and South’.

Sadiq Kahn is in charge of TFL (Transport for London) and has set the cap. so nothing to do with the PM

GrannyGravy13

Calendargirl

Just an observation, but why is the bus fare cap £1.75 for London, and £2.00 for everywhere else?

It’s little things like that which suggests ‘North and South’.

Sadiq Kahn is in charge of TFL (Transport for London) and has set the cap. so nothing to do with the PM

I was just about to point that out, too

However I do think it's a mistake for him to have a no10 of the north in Manchester.
It really should be further north. in the north

I agree NotSpaghetti It's grated on me his King of the North title - either make it North West or don't use the stupid bloody moniker. I live in the north - he isn't my King

I rather like this graphic which was posted on another platform.

Crikey!
I have been down ^such& a rabbit hole with Andy Burnham social media!
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

...hope it doesn't come back to bite me! 🤔

Hear, hear Graphite👏👏👏

There’s no doubt that Burnham’s team are proving very adept at using social media to reach people, something that Starmer was never comfortable with. Like it or not, that’s the modern world and something Reform use to their advantage.

There’s one where Burnham shows someone around his new Manchester office. Here’s a Smiths’ gold disc. I must give it back to Johnny Marr. Here’s a poster of the Brit Awards.

I think the next bit was staged. He’s “caught” looking at a webpage (which I don’t think exists) headed “Proper British Tea”. He shuts his laptop quickly and says, “You don’t need to see that”. After the cameraman leaves we see him making his own tea in a Union Jack mug.

I wondered about the latter because revelations about Farage and Cottrell talk about how they enjoy a “Proper F***ing Lunch” meaning they go somewhere very expensive and drink a lot of alcohol. And we know Reform like a flag.

In addition, we had Burnham and Healey sitting in a pub ranking bar snacks from pork scratchings to McCoys while drinking pints of lemonade. I wondered if that was a jibe at Farage too as we’re never more than five minutes away from another picture of him drinking a pint of beer.

It may be cringeworthy but it’s all part of the PR machine until they have to get down to some serious work after the summer recess.

LBC’s Ben Kentish posted something that struck me:

All the focus is on the social media videos but the really clever part of Andy Burnham’s comms this week was detaching the policy announcements from the media appearances. Keir Starmer used to announce things in speeches or at press conferences and then take questions, giving journalists an immediate chance to get him to comment on something else which would then become the story. The 6am announcements this week, with Burnham only doing media much later in the day, ensured the announcement led the agenda for much of the day.

Clever.

Yes, he’s far more manipulative and cunning than KS; he’s already proved that in his rise to the top job.

NotSpaghetti

I haven't seen any social media videos.
Where are they?

Facebook and instagram.

He’s not a social media dinosaur. I suspect that of us, comparatively, are. We will know if his message is getting through soon enough.

We will also know within a month or two if the general public, as opposed to those from within the left of the Labour Party, and those who would never be Labour supporters, think he is doing a decent job.

@Cossy "*He faces all the same problems as Starmer,*"

Is this a surprise to you?

Burnham and his accomplices got rid of Starmer for just one reason, to promote Burnham's personal ambition. To that aim, Burnhams has distorted the British electoral and Parliamentary system.

He resigned his seat as MP. to become Mayor of Manchester and build an image as "man of the people".

A sitting MP was then persuaded to resign their safe seat for a by-election to get Burnham back into Parliament where his ambition as leader of the LP and PM was unelected and unopposed.

The Labour party "Starmer must go" campaign was led by Anas Sarwar, MSP, leader of the Labour Party in the Scottish Parliament.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anas_Sarwar

With Burnham as PM, Sarwar then resigned as MSP in Holyrood and Burnham has appointed him to Westminster Cabinet as Minister for Trade and Industry.

Neat, huh?

To enable this, Sarwar will be elevated to the House of Lords to make him a member of Westminster Parliament.

(Do you get that? Sarwar has never stood for election to Westminster Parliament but now he's to be a Govt Minister in Burnhams Cabinet. The reward for helping Burnham get rid of Starmer.

Both Burnham, and Sarwar, have previously called for the abolition of the HOL. The hypocrisy, the naked manipulation, are breathtaking.

Burnham has set out his stall and it stinks.

Scotland hasn't forgotten the stench surrounding the career of Anas Sarwar's politician father Chaudhury Sarwar; (who was himself blocked from a life peerage by the House of Lords Appointments Commission on the advice of HM Revenue and Customs).

Scotland hasn't forgotten the stench surrounding the career of Anas Sarwar's politician father Chaudhury Sarwar; (who was himself blocked from a life peerage by the House of Lords Appointments Commission on the advice of HM Revenue and Customs).

Oh. The sins of the father are visited on his children?

Top marks for the House of Mirrors post of the day butterandjam, I enjoyed that.