One in one out

Alun Smith

Keir Starmer is a man out of his time. I didn’t agree with all of his decisions (particularly on welfare and his approach with Israel, Netanyahu and the proscribing of Palestine Action as a terror group) and it has seemed that this government has had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, to do the good that they have undoubtedly done.

Workers rights, renters rights, children’s rights, immigration down, the economy, whilst not racing, is growing, is stable.

On the world stage too, he’s been a steadying, mature presence after a decade and a half of embarrassing incompetence.

But….the Labour Together influence has been an unmitigated disaster and the meddling of Mandelson and McSweeney has scuppered Starmer.

Centrism hasn’t worked and it has especially not worked for a man devoid of any depth of political belief. To this day, we don’t really know what it is that Keir is actually passionate about, other than The Gunners and possibly plane travel.

Decency, yes. Fair play, yes. But what is he? He’s not a Tory , he’s not a firebrand socialist, he’s merely the most centrist of centrists, the most middle-of-the-road of the very middle-of-the road.

Actually, he’s not ‘very’ anything. Dragging the Labour party to the right edge of that middle, in an attempt to somehow assuage the rise of the far right was never going to work. That policy, along with sweeping welfare cuts had McSweeney and Mandelson written all over them.

I also think that the MSM’s obsession with the drama of politics is in serious danger of sinking our democracy altogether.

I would love for the people of this country to be more engaged with the decisions that affect their lives but I don’t think rolling news is the way to do it. If we had bulletins at 6pm and 10pm like we used to have, much of the last decade of pantomime just wouldn’t have happened.

Starmer is a good guy and I feel rather sad for a man who, in good conscience, has tried his utmost to be a 1960’s PM in an ever changing, evermore feral world and I think he’s been betrayed actually. By Streeting, by Mandelson and by John Healy.

Andrew Murray Burnham-commander of the armies of the north-ex-mayor of Greater Manchester-MP for Makerfield will be Prime Minister, in this month or the next.

As I write, of course, the picture may change, but judging from the reaction of Labour MP’s today as Burnham rode in on what might as well have been a royal train carriage, and given that Streeting has surprisingly bowed out, it’s all but assured that the King of the North will add Westminster to his portfolio.

Decentralisation

What does this mean for Wales? Well, as I said last month, when the by-election was called, Burnham is all for decentralisation . He often speaks of devolution of power away from Westminster. He has a chance then, to score an early, opportunistic goal by giving Wales and Plaid Cymru what we’re asking for.

Will he be brave enough? Well, it’s not within the manifesto Labour stood on.

Starmer had set a date to talk to Rhun ap Iorwerth, which he won’t now make, and it wasn’t in his remit either, so who knows?

At the risk of repeating myself, it would be rather churlish, and possibly damaging for Burnham, were he to refuse Plaid Cymru’s demands, having waxed lyrical for so long about how devolution has worked for Manchester.

Nye Bevan once said “we’re going to Tredegar-ise you”. Will Burnham Manchester-ise the country? Can he do that without calling a general election?

In these polarised times, these misinformed and muddled times, going ahead with changes without calling an election might be the only way to actually get anything done.