Andy Burnham Calls His Political Philosophy “Manchesterism” — and It Sounds a Lot Like What American Progressives Have Been Asking For

Keir Starmer is out, and that means Andy Burnham is the next MP to get a chance to steer Britain. But, his new “Manchesterism” philosophy might just be re-skinned liberalism.

Burnham was sworn in this morning after Starmer announced his resignation from the Labour Party’s leadership. It’s been a difficult decade and change for Britain. As the previous MP became the latest in a long line of replacements. But, Burnham has some ideas to change that game of musical chairs. He’s banking on what he calls “Manchesterism” to right the ship. And, it’s probably not going to be controversial to a lot of people in the audience.

Basically, Manchesterism is in effect a “pivot away from politics as usual.” Put more broadly, Manchesterism’s appeal is in marrying the highly funded tech service economy with public policy that benefits everyone. The people running businesses get their space and prominent placement to do work. And, folks living in a place like Manchester, or the rest of the country if things break Burnham’s way, reap the benefits of that investment with improved services and quality of life.  

If you read that synopsis, you get why a lot of American progressives have their eyes firmly fixed on what’s happening across the pond. Understandably so, especially if Burnham could manage the kind of economic performance he helped bring to Manchester at a country-wide scale. But, there are some reservations.

Andy Burnham Bets On “Manchesterism”

First, you really do have to hand it to Burnham for what his tenure has met for Manchester broadly. It’s not completely the politicians doing, but there’s no denying the economic gains of his philosophy in that city. Places like the Oxford Economics report and Goldman Sachs argue that Manchester’s growth has basically outstripped England over the last decade. In addition, the city is as competitive as any territory in the EU since the days of Barack Obama’s presidency.

 A lot of that success is down to a successful courting of business interests. For a city that historically prided itself on working class ideals and more tactile industries, Manchester is a success story about adapting to modern economic headwinds. There are a ton of places in the United States that could benefit from a similar transformation. These kinds of arguments have long waged in the halls of governance from The Rust Belt to the Deep South. But, there’s an essential trade off at the heart of Manchesterism that cannot be ignored.

 Namely, you have to court that big business to the heart of cities for the transformations that a politician like Burnham is laying out. And, in the United States, the distrust of both institutions and the private sector has probably never been higher in the modern era. Politico’s reporting on Burnham’s bid notes some of the skepticism. Campaign co-manager Louse Haigh argues that the big money is the cost of doing business.

“A lot of the growth comes from the city center in Manchester,” Haigh explained. “But then the proceeds of that are able to be distributed across Greater Manchester, that’s why they’ve been able to invest in additional bus services here, it’s why they’ve been able to invest in in police officers to help drive the crime rates down.” 

That last point is where the rubber would have to meet the road during governance.

Will This Work For An Entire Country?

People in Burnham’s camp sure hope so. It offers a vision of the future where common people reap the benefits of the ways big tech and the private sector get every advantage in modern life. But, there are concerns about whether or not Manchesterism can scale at the pace necessary for an entire country to get the positive bounce a “large enough” city enjoyed during Burnham’s tenure.

Also worthy of mention, the whole “Manchesterism” is still new for a lot of onlookers in the country. The campaign trail, and if possible, first frame of governance would be absolutely crucial. Because you hear Burnham say these things about making utilities controlled by the state and get swept up in those promises. Meanwhile, there’s an active reticence to socializing the different industries that make up daily life in Britain. So, there’s a measure of uncertainty that still hangs over the entire program.

Even with all of this, there’s still the wind at Burnham’s back because Starmer’s tenure was so diabolically impotent. The messaging never really broke through. And, the Labor Party charitably wasted the positive momentum it previously enjoyed trying to appear “reasonable” to critics of their governance. (Meanwhile, those people were never really going to embrace Starmer’s party anyway!) The future is unwritten. But, Burnham’s campaign is going to make things interesting.

(featured image: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

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