There’s a whiff of recycling in the air right now. Labour have sorted out the paper from the plastics. It’s ready to go. All they need now is for someone to pick it up. This Prime Minister isn’t that person.
Andy Burnham MP (Makerfield/Labour) makes a stab at things as he goes, but his performance is hit and miss. The reliability factor is going to be a problem for Labour as they bet their chances on him.
His policies refer back to everyone’s postcode (which in a time of data theft is less than tantalising) and works out from there. But this is precisely the problem.
No Labour Prime Minister since Blair has convinced anyone that Labour can handle a budget. None have got a grip on where their heartland is or what really matters to their internal strategists.
The bare facts are startling. The promises are easy to recite, but the numbers don’t add up. The statements reach out in proportion to the needy parts of the country, but delivery is patchy.
The return of Parliament is a chance to test this new Prime Minister, but it may turn out to be the shortest examination in their recent history. If Burnham is to make a difference, he must do it fast.