The British Pawnshop: This is no way to run the British Economy

Quantitative Easing or QE became a buzzword when governments wanted to increase cashflows to keep the economy going. The Covid Pandemic was one of those periods. QE was not meant to be a permanent way of dealing with circulation but, I am afraid, it keeps going on. But there is another factor. At one point, the British government decided to recover public bonds by buying them back to reduce the wait of public debt. This should be the most normal thing to do. What happened now? Imagine buying something by paying 100 Pounds for it and soonafter selling it for 50 Pound. Selling bonds of public debt at discounted prices means selling bonds making losses. Why should the British government want to do that? Well, interest rates payed for bonds are rising and many investors are not so interested in buying public blonds without getting higher returns. So I guess that lowering prices of bonds is a way to incentivise investors to take bonds of public debt. But what does this mean for the Treasury and the Bank of England?

In a few days time, the Chancellor of the Exchequer will have to produce the Autumn Budget and he will be doing so at a time when variables are changing so fast that by the time the Autumn Budget is printed most of the calculations in it will have to be remade. I do not khow how much will the Government be able to keep to deal with emergency adjustments, but given the nature of the British budget there will have to be substantial amounts kept as reserves to deal with emergencies. In March 2025, Wes Streeting made statements confirming that Health was going to be substantially supported in the budget as one of the number one priorities. I do suppose that Wes Streeting, now in charge of Defense will be expecting important increments of the Defense Budget. Isn´t it that the now Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey went as far as resigning his post because the then Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves did not allocate enoughs funds for Defense? Some talking about increasing the amounts from Defense up to 3.5% of the national budget, or even up to 5% of the national budget.

Ed Davey, Liberal Democrat Leader, said that the Liberal Democrats are preparing themselves for a snap election. Before Andy Burnham become Prime Minister there was talk about a snap election as a way to give Andy Burnham a national mandate even at the expense of coming back to the House of Commons with a lesser number of Labour MPs. Why? Because given the measures that the Prime Minister will have to implement, having a big majority can be a liability and could lead to internal wrangglings. Imaging having to tell your own MPs that austerity policies that they so much hate will have to implemented.

Under Keir Starmer, the man that won a historical majority for the Labour Party, there was a series of upheavals. I lost count of the many times the Labour Cabinet had to re-reshuffled. Ultimately, the Prime Minister himself had to go and so he did by leading to a by-election to choose a new Member of Parliament. Labour avoid a leadership by getting Andy Burnham onboard when he won a by-election in Makerfield to be able to apply to be the Labour Party Leader and become Labour Prime Minister, something that he managed to do without any challengers. The Labour Party was desperate to show the country an image of unity. Unfortunately, that could happen only before the announcment and implementation of real policies, something that is bound to open wounds in the Labour Party.

So will Andy Burnham call a snap Parliamentary Election to cement his leadership even at the expense of having less MPs in the House of Commons? Many say that he will not take such a risk. Others says that if he has to confront the Trade Unions and party members with very unpopular policies, he will have to be stronger as a leader. Any rebellions, any upheavals, any confrontation with trade unions, could led him to face the same challenges his predecessor Keir Starmer had to face and that ultimately led to Keir Starmer´s political demise.

Some in the Labour Party have said that Andy Burnham is the Labour Party´s last opportunity to keep the hope of winning the next General Election. What they do not mention is how difficult it will be for a Labour Leader to please all segments of the Labour Party. 

The approval of the so called Made in Europe legislation could prove to be very negative for the British Economy. Made in Europe is designed to counter Chinese competition that is creating massive job losses in the European Union. It is not meant to damage British interests, but it isnot meant to promote British interest either. The fight for markets is intensifying. War in Europe and in Middle East does not benefit Britain either. The volatility of energy prices is costing Britain dear. Everything will have to be taken into account when writing the new Autumn Budget.

All eyes on John Healey: Government advised to slow down or to halt sale of bonds of public debt

 

UK Government advised to slow down or to halt sale of bonds of public debt

The latest reports indicate that economists have stated that to prevent an acceleration in terms of the growth of British public debt, selling less bonds of public debt or stopping sales altogether would be the safe thing to do.

This would leave the Chancellor of the Exchequer with two options: more taxes or budget cuts or both options at the same time.

This is a dangerous time for the British economy because as inflation rises, more resources will be needed. Every time inflation rises, salaries are devalued and the currency is naturally devalued. You can buy less and less with the monies that you have in your pocket or the monies that you are bound to receive. This can mean, once again, industrial action.

Whether the Chancellor of the Exchequer decides to slow down or to halt the sale of bonds of public debt, the fact remains that Britain needs money to pay for its budget. The news that the European Union could be about to implement legislation designated as Made in Europe to deal with Chinese increasing competition that could lead to the lost of more than 300,000 jobs across the European Union is not good news for Britain as this could restrict British investments in the European Union.

Things are not becoming any easier for branches of the public sector like the National Health Service that are asked to create redundancies to ease out the pressure on the budgets run by NHS Trusts. Local and regional authorities have been dealing with deficits in their public finances as asking for more financial support from the Treasury as a way not to raise local and regional taxes that could put families that are already under pressure due to rising taxes and rising inflation. The official rate of inflation that was 2.9% (0.9%) is now thought to be 3.1 per cent and could go as high as 4%. Why is this important? Because much of public debt is indexed - linked to inflation rates. So when inflation rates go up, public debt goes up.

Today, the Bank of England will have to decide if it keeps the present official interest rate. This can have a direct impact on how much the financial sector - especially the banking sector - can charge for loans and mortgages. Under pressure, asking prices for sale of properties are falling in an effort to find new buyers. As much of the British economy depends on the capacity of banks to lend and on the capacity of buyers to acquire loans and mortgages, there is financial uncertainty. Financial institutions borrow to lend to potential buyers. If at any point buyers cannot make payments, leading to defaults, then the full weight of having to pay back credits falls on the banks shoulders. Some years ago, the British government had to rescue the banking sector and used government reserves to that end. For the British government to be able to do the same, once again, there would be not enough reserves available.

The British government wants to invest more in Defense, but this means taking resources away from other areas of the public administration. With limited sources of income and facing the prospect of having to pay more to keep public services as they are, there is very little or no room to maneuver.

There is always the danger of increasing industrial unrest and rising unemployment that automatically increases pressure on the so called Welfare State that needs to support those who are unemployed. Already, about 60% of those aged between 18 and 25% have little chances of finding a job to pay the bills and a growing number depend on parental financial support.

All eyes on John Healey: As Chancellor of the Exchequer, he is the Gatekeeper

 

John Healey is the Gatekeeper. All eyes now focused on the Chancellor of the Exchequer who has to decide who gets what

The honeymoon over, Labour must now focus on delivering what was promised. This is a time when national politics and geopolitics could not be more closely linked. The former Secretary for Defense that resigned when the now former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves did not deliver the monies that he needed to beef up Defense. Now, he has his hands on the public purse and resigning is not a viable option.

As always, the promise was 3% for Defense, but what is the timetable and how is it going to be achieved. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has stated that health and other vital public services will not have to suffer budget cuts and he was adamant about it. Words like Austerity, according to Labour thinkers, can only be found n the Conservative Lexicon.

Financial institutions ie Banking sector are already getting in touch with the economics team, afraid of taxes imposed on the banking sector. Lets remember than some years ago the Treasury had to intervene to save the financial sector, including the banking sector, from total destruction. Thanks to that intervention, the financial institutions that survived and did not go the way of Northern Rock, did somehow prospered. Now, it is the State´s time to survive more borrowing at higher interest rates, with less economic activity and rising unemployment. Even the Armed Forces that an inyection of cash should beef up are told to "limit training activities to what is absolutely essential because we need to save money". How is the now mythical 3% going to be spend, if it ever reached? 

And there is the issue of the Welfare State. For a myriad of reasons, local and regional authorities have been forced to pay for uncontrolled migration that includes asylum seekers. The burden is pretty obvious with local and regional authorities dealing with people as if they were pingpong balls, simply because there are not enough resources. Because of immigration with migrants often put at the top of the list for accommodation, waiting lists get longer and longer and Britons complain about the fact that they are often unable to have access to social accommodation "because migrants and refugees are given priority".

There are not enough jobs, there is not enough accommodation, and public services are being squeezed, but due to budget shortages people are not able to work because there is not enough money to fill up vacancies. Even outsourced services are being cut off with contracts that are not renewed. For all the talk about apprenticeships, none other than the BBC had to tell apprentices that there would not be jobs at the end of the line. So you might be training for a job that will not exist when you finish your training. The buzzword when it comes to real jobs that pay real money is "layoffs". Companies are laying off workers to deal with balancesheets.

So the Chancellor of the Exchequer has to deal with the biggest balancesheets. October is just round the corner and this is the time when all will be revealed. 

 

Andy Burnham: UK General Election in October or November 2026?

The talk about a General Election in October or November 2026 might be just talk or there could be justifiable reasons to mention the possibility of such election taking place. Andy Burnham inherited a historic majority from Keir Starmer but it is still Keir Starmer´s majority. 

If the idea is to introduce measures in the Autumn Budget that many in the Labour Party might not like or would be tempted to vote against, then the threat of a General Election in which they could lose their seats might make many Labour MPs reconsider any kind of opposition to the Autumn Budget. What does the Labour Cabinet think about it? Being a Member of the Cabinet is not only about prestige and about the challenges of the job. It is also about financial issues. If you are a Member of the Cabinet, you often get paid both as Member of Parliament and as a Secretary of State. A General Election means taking the risk of losing both positions at once. 

How ready are political parties to fight a General Election? By-Elections are one thing, but a General Election is a different cup of tea.

Keir Starmer: Nationalisation of British Steel was the logical thing to do in terms of British National Security

 

The nationalisation of a strategic resources was the logical thing to do. Moreover, the company was requirinig state subsidies to operate to the point that Chinese owners were about to shut down furnaces. In esence, this means that Chinese owners thought that the company was not commercially viable.

Once furnaces could be shut down, British Steel would be dead in the water. So Keir Starmer did was rational to keep British Steel alive without having to provide subsides to private investors.

Steel plays a major role in infrastrure and in the defense industry. Instead of importing steel, Britain can produce its own. It will be costly, but it makes sense because it make Britain less dependent in times when, at any given time in the near future, Britain could go to war.

The new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has stated that he wants to re-industrialise Britain, so it makes sense to nationalise steel that is a major component for both civilian and military endeavours.

Transport is a major issue when it comes to uniting the country and when it comes to National Security. Andy Burnham has indicated his intention to bring back all railway transport into public ownership. Something remains to be said about fast railway transport that is still in private ownership and about project that were abandoned by Rishi Sunak "due to escalating costs". Such costs are directly related to private contractors. The state might decide to continue the project employing public resources instead of private contractors, thus controlling costs directly.

Britain - July 20th 2026 - Business as usual or the start of major changes?

 

Prime Minister Andy Burnham?

Will July 20th 2026 mark a new beginning or the beginning of the end? Much has been said, but nothing has been confirmed. It is just words in the air. We know practically nothing about what the direction of travel will be. We are being deliberately left in the dark and this is never reassuring.

Uncertainty and fear and little hope. Once the limelights are no more, we have landed down on the same political realities. Expect no miracle. Expect a lot of pain. Much more pain that you thought that you would have to bear because there is not a chance that in the short or medium term economic prospects will improve.

Keir Starmer left having brought British Steel into the public sector. Andy Burnham is planning to bring all railway transport into the public sector and is talking about re-industrialising Britain. But he does not go so far as talking about bringing all utilities into the public sector.

Is this the image of the next British Prime Minister? Andy Burham´s massive challenges ahead

Was Keir Starmer naive when he believed that offering Andy burnham a seat in the Cabinet was the way to prevent a leadership challenge?

It is being reported that even people who were not Labour traditional voters decided to vote for Andy Burnham as a way to replace Keir Starmer as Prime Minister. Whether this is true or not, the fact remains that Andy Burnham got about 55 per cent of the votes in the by-election in Makerfield. 

He even used the name of the town linking the name to what he intends to do. Despite all promises, the choice of advisers might indicate that he will travel along ways that his now enthusiastic supporters might not like. The name Goldman Sachs is not usually associated with policies supported by the Labour Party. How much of what he said was electoral talk and how much is part of his real intentions when he enters Number 10?

For the moment, Keir Starmer is still at Number 10 and some said that a leadership election is necessary to validate Andy Burnham as new Prime Minister, that the transfer of power should not happen without such election. Whether this is or is not a formaly remains to be seen.

Butter or Cannons - when it comes to beefing up Defense something has to give. Cuts in other areas will have to be made to provide funding for Defense. Is this going to be a popular move amongs Labour supporters?

At the moment, he is very popular. This is called a Political Hnneymoon. How long will the political honeymoon last? Promising is one thing. Delivering is a completely different matter.

Messiahnic leaders? Whoever leads the Labour Party, internal divisions will stil be around

 Makerfield: Beginning or End of a Political Era

Disappointment led to a categoric defeat for both Labour and Conservative. Three political parties benefitted from it: Reform, Greens and Lib Dems.

In Lambeth Borough Council, a council that used to be a flagship of the Labour Party, the Green Party is callenging the Labour Party and on June 1st 2026, the Green Party might fundamentally change the way the council is run by getting rid of the cabinet system. This means that the Labour Party will no longer be able to use a small team to control the way things are done and decisions will be taken not just by a few, but by the whole ensemble of Councillors elected to represent Lambeth residents.

This is a major change and we wait to see if similar changes happen in other local authorities.

Now, going back to the issue of the by-election of an MP in Wakerfield, there are several possibilities. Andy Burnham is elected MP or Andy Burnham is not elected MP. If Andy Burnham is elected MP, he will have to have enough support in a leadership challenge to unseat Keir Starmer. Then again there are two options: he manages to win or he fails to get enough support.

If Andy Burnham is not elected MP, then we go back to square one and talk about other contenders within the Labour Party. There are other issues like who is the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Is it Rachel Reeves or Ed Milliband? Would Keir Starmer choose to negotiate a new Cabinent to appease his opponents?

Of course, there is also the issue of who is going to be the new Manchester Mayor as Andy Burnham stance to become MP has left the Mayoral seat vacant.

Now, lets think for a moment that Andy Burnham manages to get elected MP and manages to become Prime Minister. From the start, he would face enormous challenges inherited from Keir Starmer's administration. Iran, Ukraine, energy crisis, illegal immigration rising unemployment, high taxation, health, education, and so forth. Changing a Prime Minister does not mean that automatically everything will be sorted. Troublesome relationships will have to be dealt with. Will Andy Burnham be a better communicator? Will he be able to control Labour factions? If he cannot succeed then, without expectations and hope for an improvement, the panorama for the Labour Party will be even worse.

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Prime Minister Keir Starmer promises to campaign for Andy Burnham in Makerfield By-Election

 

Just recently, apparently, Prime Minister Keir Starmer stood on the way and reportedly prevented Andy Burnham from standing as a Labour Candidate that Labour lost to the Green Party. 

Since then, Labour nost just lost one by-election. Labour had a catastrophic performance in local elections, performace that reinforce a trend of people who want him to stand down as Labour Party Leader and therefore as British Prime Minister.

Wes Streeting, a now former Health Secretary, has stated that if there is a leadership challenge he would be standing in the Leadership Campaign.

Now, today, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has promised that he will campaign for Andy Burnham. This is a peculiar position to be in for, if Andy Burnham wins the by-election then he as newly elected MP would be in a position to challenge Keir Starmer as Leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister.

Lets not forget that the fact that Andy Burnham will be standing in the by-election means that the post of Manchester Mayor is vacant and this means having to have an additional by-election.

This is a crucial moment. Labour must win both by-election. Losing Makerfield, means the end of Andy Burnham´s chances of becoming Prime Minister without a General Election. It is a mixed baggage for Keir Starmer and the Labour Party. 

(Pending updates)

Will Labour supporters support Andy Burnham, abstain or vote Reform?

 

The Guardian: Andy Burnham to face Reform´s Robert Kenyon in crucial Makerfield by-election?

There is no doubt about the fact of why Andy Burnham has decided to stand in a by-election that will cost him is seat as Manchester Mayor and possibly lead him into the wilderness if he looses the by-election.

London Metropolitan Labour blocked Andy Burnham from standing in a by-election before the local elections and Labour lost the seat that by-then Andy Burnham wanted to stand for. 

There are different versions of events.

One version was that Keir Starmer did not want Andy Burnham to return to the House of Commons as MP and potentially challenge him for the leadership of the Labour Party. If successful, Andy Burnham had a chance of replaceing Keir Starmer as British Prime Minister.

Another version of events is that the Labour Party blocked Andy Burnham afraid of the fact that is Andy Burnham resigned as Mayor of Manchester then the Labour Party would lose the Mayoral seat in Manchester.

Whatever version of events you choose to believe, the fact that in the local elections Reform walked away with a huge number of seats makes the experience of standing to confront Reform in Manchester a very dangerous experience.

But then the question arises: what will Labour voters do, depending on which faction of the Labour Party they support.

1) Will they vote for Andy Burnham thus increasing the possibility of a success that will take him all the way into the House of Commons and make him a challenger for the Leadership of the Labour Party?

2) Will they abstain thus making failure a certainty? and 3) Will they even consider supporting the Opposition to send Andy Burnham into the wilderness, as a way to protect Keir Starmer?

Just two years ago, Robert Kenyon came second in the 2024 General Election that Labour won by a landslide, but this was before the local elections that almost wiped out Labour across Manchester. There are other players and they do matter if they chip support away from the main contenders. 

This has turned out to be one of the most decisive by-elections in British history.  What happens in Makerfield will affect the ruling party and the country as a whole. If Andy Burnham wins then the door will be opened for a leadership challenge. If Andy Burnham loses, he would have lost not only a by-election but also his seat as Manchester Mayor,

The Labour Party could lose both a by-election in Makerfield and the Manchester Mayor seat, and this after a disastrous set of local elections.

 

Keir Starmer will say whatever he thinks you want to hear without actually meaning what he says

 

Keir Starmer's turnaround regarding ULEZ, about tuition fees and about two-children welfare payments tell you everything you want to know. He made promises to Stop Oil to get their financial support and to show certain factions of his own political party that he is truthful about environmental goals, but this is about it.

Keir Starmer is the kind of politician that will make meaningless promises. He will kneel down and tell you that he believes that women have penises and whatever else he thinks is popular only to turn against what he says if he senses that such statements will not bring him votes and his is oblivious to the feelings of segments of his own party that go against his declared official policies. If you need somebody that will take into account the entire country, Keir Starmer is not the man for the job.

As the budget to deal with illegal immigrants rises and rises, he will continue talking about open floodgates because segments of his own party have been indoctrinated to accept what is illegal and pretend that breaking laws and entering the country illegally for the benefit of criminal gangs is perfectly legal and normal. Such lack of consistency is dangerous as it is criminal. If you are a man in charge of enforcing laws and make a political career based on ignoring laws, then you are no different from a career criminal.

The Labour Party has quality politicians like Andy Burham. What the heck is the Labour Party thinking about when it chooses people like Keir Starmer. Things have got to the point when long term Labour supports are being preventing from standing and such is the case of Mayoral Candidate that chose to abandon the Labour Party to stand as independent because the London clique does not want to stand to represent its own constituents.

Andy Burham is consistent and experienced and it has proved it as Mayor of Manchester. Unfortunately, according to the Labour Party rules, Andy Burham cannot stand for Leader because he is not a member of Parliament. 

And what example is Keir Starmer giving to Londoners, when he turned around and accused Sadiq Khan saying that Sadiq Khan's policies lost the Labour Party the election in Uxbridge? Next year, there will be elections for Mayor of London and the London Assembly. Keir Starmer is dividing his own political party, having more political turnarounds than a merry-go-round, making statements about things he does not really believe, and failing to listen to Labour Party supporters. 

 

Politics can change at very short notice and so can geopolitics

Keir Starmer

What happened in the last 48 hours is the equivalent of a political earthquake. Two political figures - Jeremy Corbyn and Nicola Sturgeon have been sidelined or so is that the forces that put them out of the way want to believe.

Nicola Sturgeon was not so much important as the Scottish leader that moved to break down the United Kingdom. She has been the tool used by those in charge of the European Union to put hurdles across the way of the Conservative governmenty in Westminster. She has been the outspoken defender of the EU against the British government. Who will have the political caliber to replace her and will the replacement follow the orders of the European Union? This remains to be seen.

No one apart from Nicola Sturgeon has the profile to play such a role and the Alba Party led by Alex Salmond will surely capitalize on her departure, in spite of the fact that Alex Salmond has been one of those targetted as part of the anti-Russia campaign. 

Some say that the Labour Party in Scotland will benefit, but this remains to be seen. The Labour Party is considered to be a London Metropolitan Party, not a national party, not a defender of Scottish interests at all and whoever has hopes regarding independence will not support the Labour Party.

The command given to Keir Starmer was to erradicate the left of the Labour Party that has been traditionally supportive of Palestine and very critical of Israeli policies in the occupied territories. Keir Starmer might not be Jewish, but his wife is Jewish and daughter of a Rabbi and their children are raised as Jews. Starmer married Victoria Alexander in 2007. The couples's son and daughter are being brought up in the Jewish faith of their mother. Victoria worked as a solicitor and now work in the National Health Service in occupational health. Victoria is originally from Poland and Keir Starmer stated that 'on her father's side there are mitzvahs, synagoques - there's all the traditions'. And also, presumably, all the related geopolitical allegiances that come with it.

Therefore, you don't have to struggle to guess what his views in terms of geopolitics and regarding the State of Israel actually are and this is why just a few hours ago he declared that Jeremy Corbyn will be excluded from the Labour Party and not allowed to stand as a Candidate in Islington, a seat that Jeremy Corbyn has represented for a very long time.    

In recent elections, the Conservative Party won control of the so called Red Wall, turning traditional Labour seats into Conservative seats. I wonder how traditional Labour and in particular Labour areas that have a predominantly Islamic population will react. Keir Starmer is a Metropolitan Londoner. It will be hard to persuade non Londoners and especially Northerners and Middle England. In the north, Andy Burnham, despite his retiscence to declare his aspirations regarding the leadership, has the right age, the right amount of experience and the right profile and as Mayor of Manchester can claim that he is not a privileged Southeasterner when a sizeable number of voters claim that Westminster has forgotten the rest of the country. In this regard, Keir Starmer's allegiance to Israel, his total contempt for the cause of Palestine, his inability to define what a woman is (surely he knows what a woman is, but he is afraid of straight answers that could put him on a collision course with segments of his own political party). To gain some support he will have to stop being a lawyer and become a politician. He will have to show courage and take real risks.

In terms of public image, he hasn't done extremely well. Kneeling down for the cameras was not his best moment. Emulating Boris Johnson by travelling to Kiev was not his best move either. His at best lukewarm support for the trade union movement did not dress him with flying colours either and it must be remarked that some critically important segments of the trade union movement no longer support the Labour Party. Will his charge against Jeremy Corbyn and his supporters win him many votes? Given the present political environment, the next General Election is for Keir Starmer to lose. Having said that, as we never expected Nicola Sturgeon to fall from power so ungratiously and so dramatically, it remains to be seen if Keir Starmer will be Labour leader in 2024. Will Jeremy Corbyn's supporters accept the invitation to leave the Labour Party? Will the Trade Unions that still support the Labour Party continue to support the Labour Party? What if the Labour Party is once again divided? Worse still, what if Labour voters as it has happened in recent times, decide to abstain?  

Winning an election is a feat, but winning an election with a 300 votes margin when you had a 3,000 vote margin before is not 'excellent'.

 After 11 years in Opposition, the Labour Party should be making inroads and it isn't. What happened in the so called Red Wall, what happened in Hartlepool, what happened in Chesham and Amersham and to an extent what happened in Batley and Spen, tell yous that all is not well.

Despite the celebratory mood of Keir Starmer that saw the writing on the wall had the Labour Party been defeated in Batley and Spen - a seat that it holds since 1997, the knives were getting ready to strike. I am focused on my work and I am not thinking about any Leadership challenges, stated Angela Rayner now Deputy Leader. It was the kind of denial that much more of denial is a reminder: I am here. I am ready.

The Labour Party can blame George Galloway for their tiny majority in Batley and Spen, but what happened in Hartlepool happened because Labour voters chose not to vote. It was said again and again that in Batley and Spen there is an Asian majority that is increasingly discontent with Keir Starmer stance on Palestine. And there is more. We must remember that the Labour Party no longer has control of the local authority due to several local issues.

What next? There are still about three years before the next General Election. This should be the time that Keir Starmer should use to put the Labour Party back on track. He is lucky to have the support of Andy Burnham and even the support of Ken Livingstone that speaking today on GB News said that Keir Starmer is a genuine Labour man, that as soon as Keir Starmer went to ask him for advice as soon as he became Labour Party Leader.

Ken Livingstone didn't have kind words for George Galloway, but the fact that George Galloway was a complete outsider in Batley and Spen and still managed to get more than 8,000 votes, coming in third place, is a message that cannot be ignored. How many people in the Labour Party were secretely wishing that George Galloway's participation could allow them to challenge Keir Starmer and retoute the Labour Party?

Andy Burnham, the man that many want as Labour Party Leader, came out in support of Keir Starmer and said that he had the intention of keeping his word to remain as Mayor of Manchester for a full term.

Yes, the Labour Party has serious internal issues to deal with, but for some the present circumstances are not the best environment to launch a leadership challenge. Andy Burnham cannot be Labour Party Leader without being an MP. The next General Election should take place in 2024. So unless there was a by-election that he could possibly win, throwing away his seat as Mayor of Manchester where he has a much greater political profile both locally and nationally would be a very poor choice.

Going back to Ken Livingstone, could Ken Livingstone have any aspirations to be allowed to rejoin the Labour Party? His comments about World War Two events and the episode with a Jewish journalist that he compaired to 'a German Concentration Camp Guard' would stand on the way of this return when many in the Labour Party are terrified about how the Jewish Community could react. 

Kim Leadbeater: In a first past the post election, we should think more about the qualities of the candidate than about the qualities of the leader of a political party

 

Whether Kim Leadbeater is or isn't the sister of Jo Cox that used to represent Batley and Spen - there will be a by-election next July - is for some people a relevant issue and some think that she was selected to stand because she is the sister of Jo Cox.

For me, personally, it is about the qualities of the candidate and it should not matter who is the Leader of the Labour Party. It is a first-past-the-post election. We should focus on the candidate and not on who is the Leader of the party.

By the same token, people in Manchester voted for Andy Burnham because Andy Burnham was the man standing, I am sure that many of those voting for Andy Burnham do not agree with the way Keir Starmer is leading the Labour Party, but they still voted for Andy Burnham because they like the way he runs Manchester as Mayor of Manchester. The same should apply to Batley and Spen.

Some Labour MPs have publicly said that if the Labour Party loses the by-election in a seat that they have held since 1997 (the year when Tony Blair came to power as Prime Minister), it will be curtains for Keir Starmer's leadership. For some, this is about the Labour Party. I think this is about the person that the people of Batley and Spen want to represent them in Westminster.

Trying to equate Hartlepool with Batley and Spen is wrong for various reasons. Firstly, the by-election in Hartlepool was called because the local Labour MP resigned because of an ongoing investigation into sexual abuses. The situation is Batley and Spen is radically different. The by-election in Batley and Spen was called because Tracy Brabin - the local Labour MP - was elected Mayor of West Yorkshire. 

There is a significant factor. In the EU Membership Referendum, 60 per cent of those who voted voted for Brexit. Therefore, some in the Labour Party should tone down their anti-Brexit rhetoric and at least try to respect the will of the voters of Batley and Spen.

Kim Leadbeater has spoken with wisdom. She has reminded the official Labour Party that far too many Labour MPs have no experience of the real world and that this contributes to their detachment from ordinary voters. 

Keir Starmer: Captain, what are your orders?

Keir Starmer: Does the Captain of the ship know what he wants to do?

After the May elections, it was not all defeat for the Labour Party. Andy Burham won again as Mayor of Manchester and there were other successes at Mayoral Level. In Wales, once again, Labour came up victorious. 

What has become self-evident is that the Labour Party won certain elections in spite of Keir Starmer's term as Labour Party Leader and not because of Keir Starmer Leadership.

Both friends and foes keep asking: what that the Labour Party actually stand for? Now, Keir Starmer has come up with one word: Modernisation. He says that the Labour Party needs to be modernised to win elections.

 What does 'modernisation' mean in this particular case? Can he be more specific?

The most important issue is to define what exactly the Labour Party stands for under his leadership. He is the captain of the ship. The shadow cabinet is his team of officers onboard and the grassroots are his sailors. Do the officers know what the captain wants them to do? Do the sailors know what the captain expects them to do? Where is the ship heading to?

Right after the election, the main complaint was that the party doesn't know what it stands for, that the grassroots don't know what the party stands for and that voters don't have a clue about what the party stands for. Many Labour supporters couldn't bring themselves to vote for anybody else and stayed home in despair. The role of the captain is to lead and this is exactly what Keir Starmer is not doing.

How many hours did the Shadow Cabinet spend criticizing the government? How many hours did the Shadow Cabinet actually spend talking about specific and detailed policies? He came up presumably to get rid of anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. Is that all he has to offer?

Being an experienced lawman, an experienced barrister, does not make you a political leader. Keir Starmer has a one in a lifetime opportunity to make a difference. The obvious question would be: Does Keir Starmer know what he wants to do with the Labour Party?

In 1972, Robert Redford starred in the movie The Candidate. The son of a former Senator got himself elected Senator. On the day when his victory is confirmed, his agent finds him in his bedroom in a state of anxiety and fear. Instead of rejoicing because of his electoral victory, he is absolutely desperate and asks his agent 'What do I do next?' and begs for help because he doesn't know what to do.

Keir Starmer is a good and honest man. He is an experienced lawman. He expresses his opinions openly, but this does not necessarily make him a good political leader. Jeremy Corbyn is a conviction politician, somebody that trully believes what he is saying, but not necessarily a good political leader either.

The rules of the Labour Party dictate that to be a Labour Party Leader you must be a Member of Parliament. This would not allow Andy Burnham to stand for Labour Party Leader. Because of his role as Mayor of Manchester, Andy Burnham was very comfortably re-elected a few days ago. Every leadership change can be traumatic and there are still open wounds caused by the manner of the departure of the previous leader. The Labour Party is now more factional than ever before. The next General Election is due to take place in 2024. There was a reshuffle when Jeremy Corbyn was deposed and there has been yet another reshuffle after the May 2021 Elections. People are going to keep asking: what does the Labour Party stand for? Captain Starmer, what are your orders?