Before Andy Burnham takes power on Monday, he could do worse than spend a moment reflecting on what happened to Keir Starmer’s landslide victory and 17% post-election poll lead. How did Starmer end up trailing Nigel Farage and Reform UK just two years later? Why have so many working-class voters once again turned their backs on Labour?
Many had returned in 2024 after leaving the party in 2019, but now feel deeply let down. Reflecting on this is well worth Burnham’s time because Labour’s relationship with working-class supporters, once its core vote, is in peril. Yet there is no route to a parliamentary majority without them.
Of course, this is not just an electoral imperative – championing the rights of working-class voters is most progressive parties’ moral mission.
