The Guardian
· collected 2026-09-26 · by Pippa Crerar political editor
Andy Burnham has said he can deliver on his promise of radical change for the country despite severe economic headwinds, telling the Guardian: “There’s always things you can do, it’s just whether you’re prepared to do them.”
asserted
you → say → them
The prime minister acknowledged the public finances were “challenging” ahead of next month’s budget but said that delivering fiscal stability would be “crucial”, because only then would the government be able to focus on fixing bigger problems.
asserted
government → acknowledge → problems
A series of global economic shocks, including the Iran conflict, have put the UK economy under intense inflationary pressure and pushed up borrowing costs, leaving the government limited room for manoeuvre.
asserted
series → include → manoeuvre
Ahead of his first Labour conference as prime minister, however, Burnham sought to both reassure voters he was willing to make tough decisions to deliver change, and to show the markets that he could ensure fiscal stability while preparing the groundwork for more substantial change ahead.
uncertain
he → seek → change
Speaking to the Guardian on the eve of his first conference as Labour leader, he said: “The public would have more respect for us if we go and grab something difficult … and say, ‘Right, we’re going to do something here’, rather than constantly playing the political game before fixing the problems.
asserted
we → speak → problems
“It’s challenging, definitely, but there are still things that you can do.
asserted
you → ’ → that
Always in politics, there are things that you can do.
asserted
you → be → that
The question is sometimes: Are you prepared to do them?
asserted
you → do → them
Yeah, I am prepared to do them.
asserted
I → do → them
When asked about the need for a large fiscal buffer against shocks, he said the key thing was stability, indicating that he understood the need to reassure the markets, but that more radical transformation of the state would follow.
asserted
transformation → ask → state
“I do think it is crucial to have stability and to show that there’s a willingness to face up to the reality of some of these difficult things.
asserted
it → think → things
But actually from that stability, the permission can come to make bigger change that, in the end, could put the country in a stronger position in relation to the public finances,” he said.
uncertain
he → come → finances
“You have to have stability, but you have to do what you can within that.
asserted
you → have → that
You can’t pursue a major programme of change, which is what I believe the country needs, in a chaotic situation.”
asserted
country → pursue → situation
After ruling out holding a snap general election before 2029, Burnham said that he wanted to set out a clear path for how the country could move to a better place – and that he hadn’t been spending his time “sitting politicking and strategising” but instead was focused on fixing problems.
uncertain
he → rule → problems
His ambition to give people “a bit more belief that things can improve” across the country, he said, would not come from “endlessly running elections and referendums”.
asserted
he → give → elections
He denied having had any discussions with his senior team about whether to call an early election.
asserted
He → deny → election
“The speculation in no way matches the internal discussion because there isn’t one,” he said, rejecting claims he did not have a mandate as the public had voted for the Labour party.
uncertain
public → match → party
However, Burnham acknowledged he was hemmed in on tax and the fiscal rules of Keir Starmer’s manifesto commitments, and suggested he would have done it differently had he been in charge at the time.
uncertain
he → acknowledge → time
“I’ve inherited those positions and, as I say, I think the main thing for me is to focus on the here and now for people, not to be self-serving about ‘oh, what would suit me?’ and playing politics.
asserted
what → inherit → politics
That’s not where my mind is, and possibly would have framed it different, but we are where we are, you know, and that’s the reality.”
uncertain
that → ’ → it
Burnham played down speculation that Labour may give more support for energy bills, with the cap price set to soar from January.
uncertain
price → play → January
“I think people need to remember that measures have already been taken,” he said, referring to VAT on electricity bills being scrapped from next week.
asserted
he → think → week
The prime minister also reiterated that while he thought the welfare bill was too high, the will among Labour MPs was “not there for crude cuts” because they would push people into crisis, so a longer term approach to reform was required.
asserted
approach → reiterate → reform
After warning of the risks, as well as the opportunities of artificial intelligence at the UN last week, Burnham admitted to concerns about rogue AI agents attacking state institutions in the UK, after the Australian medicare system was hit.
asserted
system → warn → UK
Burnham addressed the presence of far-right protesters on the streets of Britain, accusing Daniel Thomas, who has led black-clad anti-migrant vigilantes on the streets of some English towns, of “creating fear” but did not go as far as Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, who accused him of being an “outright racist”.
asserted
who → address → him
Speaking of Thomas’s masked gangs, he said: “I mean that’s not Britain.
asserted
that → speak → gangs
That’s not what we want to see in people’s communities.
asserted
we → ’ → communities
There’s legitimate concerns about issues, and then there is intimidation – and that is intimidation,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → issues
The prime minister also addressed political funding, which has been in the spotlight since Reform UK received two record-breaking £36m donations from cryptocurrency billionaires, saying that – contrary to reports – he would not rule out a domestic donations cap.
“You know I think we do need to continue to have a cross-party discussion about how do we uphold trust in politics?
asserted
we → address → politics
How do we do not give the impression that politics can be bought and that people are, if you like, unduly influenced?”
asserted
you → give → impression
He was also open to looking at election spending limits, he said, which are now being examined by the Electoral Commission, adding that he has “real concerns” about crypto-fuelled politics.
asserted
he → look → politics
An emotional Burnham revealed that the death of his father, Roy, last week had made him more determined to deliver.
asserted
him → reveal → father
“I’m in this job for what I can do for people, not for what it can do for me … to make the changes that my dad, for instance, long pushed me to make,” he said.
asserted
he → ’m → me
“It’s been a hard thing, if I’m honest, coming into this position in the last three months when I also knew in my heart that I was starting this journey as my dad was ending his.
asserted
dad → ’m → his
“Although that’s hard, and I’m not seeking sympathy in saying it, I say it because the coming together of those two things increases my determination to make a difference on the things that I’ve long said I want to fix.”
With political courage expected to be a focus of his speech to Labour’s conference in Liverpool, Burnham said he was willing to be honest with the public about what needed to happen, even if it was difficult to hear.
asserted
it → ’ → public
“I think the public want to see, number one, honesty about things.
asserted
public → think → things
So not spin or putting things a certain way that’s self-serving.
asserted
that → spin → things
They want honesty, and then they want, I think, difficult but real decisions,” said Burnham.
asserted
Burnham → want → decisions
I don’t think politics has been prepared to do that enough in recent times.”
asserted
politics → think → times
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
