5 Reasons to be Hopeful About Andy Burnham

Why even some of Andy Burnham's political opponents are now starting to look again at the Labour party under his leadership

I spent the past two days at the Womad Festival in Wiltshire where Byline Times were running the ‘World of Words’ tent.

One of our speakers was Green Party leader Zack Polanski.

For the past year Polanski and the Greens have been locked in what he described as a “toxic” fight with his Labour opponents, who he has insisted he will “replace” as the main party on the left of British politics.

Yet with Andy Burnham now in Number 10, Polanski appears to be subtly shifting his approach.

In an expansive and personal interview with our editor Hardeep Matharu, Polanski said he now has “hope” for a better and less “toxic” relationship with a more left wing Labour party under Burnham.

“I do think Andy Burnham is on the left of Keir Starmer, and I think it would be churlish to pretend any other way…” he said strikingly, adding that he now believed there could be a “reset” in relations between the two parties on issues like electoral reform and the cost of living.

So is Polanski right to sense a shift in our politics under Burnham, or are we all being set up again for another great disappointment?

Here’s why I believe there are now at least some good grounds for optimism.