‘Andy Burnham has a mandate for change – but he must move at lightning speed’

The British public is tired. They are skint, weary of broken promises, and crying out for proof that change is possible and politics can work in their favour.

When Andy Burnham took the stage in Manchester yesterday, he wasn’t just speaking to a room of assembled supporters; he was speaking to a nation holding its breath. Our latest 38 Degrees Rapid Response Voter Panel, conducted with JL Partners, shows that for many, his speech offered a flicker of genuine hope. This research, conducted with 100 voters in the hours immediately after his speech offers a snap public response. As one voter from Glasgow told us: “If what he says works, the future looks brighter.”

At people powered campaign group 38 Degrees, we know that hope is a powerful tool, but it is a fragile one. The public isn’t looking for rhetoric; they are looking for action on the cost of living and the degradation of our public services. While the reaction from voters to Burnham’s vision was largely positive –with voters across the ideological spectrum seeing potential – there is an unmistakable warning buried in the data: patience is wearing thin.

READ MORE: Burnham sets out vision for Britain with new ‘Number 10 North’

There is a clear appetite for the bold moves Burnham has proposed. His plan for a “housing-first philosophy” and his commitment to bringing essential services into public control are not just popular; they are exactly the kind of change voters demand. When we asked about plans to bring utilities back under public control, for example, the verdict was emphatic. And it spoke as much to values of fairness as it did to the cost of living crisis. “People are entitled to have clean water as a necessity. Big companies should not be making lots of money out of this.”

Those of us living outside the capital will not be surprised to read that Burnham’s focus on power returning to the regions—the proposed “No.10 North”—also struck a chord with voters who feel Westminster is too detached from their everyday lives. As one voter put it: “I support this. There has been too much power in London and not the rest of the country. Doing this will mean investments over the greater part of the UK, stopping people feeling left behind.” 

So far, so good. But – and it’s a big but: we cannot ignore the deep-seated skepticism that defines the current mood amongst voters. This is a “once bitten, twice shy” electorate. For every voter (indeed in this case, a Reform voter) who says, “I believe Mr Burnham is what this country needs,” there is another who warns, “I think he is saying what he needs to get into parliament.”

The message from the public is simple: they want to believe, but they are waiting to be convinced. They are desperate for a sense of affordability in a world where everything feels out of reach. As a voter from Huddersfield put it: “The average person just wants life to feel affordable again.”

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At 38 Degrees, we banged the drum for change relentlessly before, during and after the last General Election. We have celebrated progress, like children being lifted from poverty and investment in our NHS, and fought against misguided ideas, like plans to cut benefits and winter fuel payments. And we have relentlessly pushed for the Government to go further, faster, as we watched public patience wear thin. The moment we are now in signifies a window of opportunity. Many voters want to be optimistic. A voter from Bradford told us they feel “slightly more optimistic now that there will be a new Prime Minister.” But Burnham must move at lightning speed. The days of accepting words at face value are over.

The public is happy to give Andy Burnham a hearing, and a fair chance. Now, the burden of proof is entirely on him. As one voter from Luton bluntly summarised: “Please just deliver on your promises.”

Methodology

JL Partners polled 100 adults across the UK to hear their reactions to Andy Burnham’s speech setting out his vision for the country if he became Prime Minister. To hear these in their own words, we asked five open-ended questions on: their overall impressions of Andy Burnham’s plans, feelings about the future of the country, stance on public ownership of utilities, “No. 10 North,” and their message to Andy Burnham ahead of him likely becoming Prime Minister. 

Fieldwork took place on the 29th of June, after Andy Burnham concluded his speech.

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