Could Andy Burnham be the most important PM since Thatcher?

The News Agents

Friday, 24 July 2026 - 44 minutes

There's been a flurry of policy announcements in Andy Burnham's first week as PM - but there is something more significant in the words he has been using to describe his mission. He's talked about reversing forty years of neoliberalism, about re-industrialising Britain, ending trickle down economics - fundamentally reshaping the British State and its driving purpose.

He promised, on the steps of Downing Street, to be a "circuit breaker", delivering the biggest change to the country since Thatcher. It's big talk - and the stakes are high. But how can he put that into action? How can he demonstrate this new form of politics? What even is the neoliberalism he is trying to wind back anyway?

Neal Lawson has been an influential Labour thinker, advisor, and campaigner for decades. He knows Burnham well - he is one of the driving forces behind 'Manchesterism'. He came into the News Agents studio to discuss just the Herculean task facing Andy Burnham - and what Britain might look like if he succeeds.

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