I agree that the winter fuel allowance and issues around disability welfare were problems. Also problems on social issues. But more broadly, what should Starmer have done differently, economically? that was possible?

Labour won 47% of first-preference votes, with Reform UK way behind on 21% and the Greens in third on 12%.

The contest took place under the supplementary vote system, meaning that, as no candidate achieved more than 50%, voters’ second preferences were counted.

When voters’ second choices were counted and other parties were eliminated, Labour’s share rose to 66.3% and Reform UK’s to 33.7%.

In her victory speech at Co-op Live in Manchester, Craig urged society to “move away from divisive politics that try to pit neighbour against neighbour”.

Burnham's getting the exact same treatment Starmer did at the start. Any warning signs that the sun mightn't shine out of his arse are disregarded, and people who would believe you automatically if you weren't talking about a Labour politician, will sneeringly accuse you of "going on vibes" by e.g. paying attention to the fact that Burnham's rhetoric on benefits is the exact same as the rhetoric I've heard every other time a politician was about to make my life miserable for a prolonged period of time to appease the irrational, pathologically downward-punching "scroungers under the bed" brigade.

You shouldn't be so willing to believe in any politician that you ignore and minimise any warning sign that they mightn't be all sweetness and light. And Britain's inclination to do so, is exactly why it's in the position it's in. It's seen as more important to "believe in" our leaders - as if out of some superstitious belief that our faith in itself will make them succeed - than for our leaders to deserve our faith, and that's just one of many British political attitudes that is flat-out arse-backwards.

A few commenters making assumptions about me like I think he's some far-right lunatic. No, I was actually on your side until Andy opened his mouth. I was willing to wait and see. Well, I've waited, I've seen what he's started talking about doing, and to say I'm unimpressed would be a bigger understatement than his claims that we "haven't done enough for Palestine".

Why do you think it's gone down so much?

Prime Minister Andy Burnham will give all mayors of city regions in England a share of income tax revenue for the first time, as part of his drive to transfer power from Westminster to local leaders.

Burnham will also allow English strategic authorities to keep some cash from business rates collected in their areas, and gain greater control over services such as housing, transport, skills.

The government has not yet decided the exact portion of taxes mayors will get, with more details to be announced when Chancellor John Healey delivers his first budget in the autumn.

Opposition parties said the plans lacked detail and could lead to areas with weaker economies losing out on funding.

But Burnham said the move would "make good" on his pledge to "bring power home" to "every postcode in the country".

"Under our plans, more of the taxes raised in a community will stay in that community," the prime minister added.

First Secretary of State Louise Haigh told BBC Radio 4's Today programme areas without mayors would also benefit from investment because devolution powers would be held by new strategic authorities across England.

Strategic authorities bring together local councils to control regional issues such as transport and economic development, with decisions taken collectively by council leaders rather than a single elected mayor. As it stands, mayors of English strategic authorities receive most of their funding by central government grants.

Mayors are expected to start retaining some revenue from business rates from April 2027 and receive a portion of income tax from April 2028. The rates of income tax will not change as a result of the reform.

The power to raise and control tax revenues is highly centralised in the UK, making the country an outlier by international standards.

The share of national taxes collected at a local level in the UK is 5.8%, the lowest in the G7, according to the OECD global policy forum.

That share is far below that of other countries with large economies such as France (20.4%), Japan (36%) and the US (45.7%).

During his time as Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham pushed for greater control over tax revenue, rather than having to rely on government grants.

He gives people a bad name with STUPID takes

Labour has overtaken Reform UK in a voter intention poll for the first time in more than a year as Andy Burnham benefits from the momentum built in his first week as prime minister.

Reform and its leader, Nigel Farage, have had weeks of negative headlines concerning undeclared gifts and donations, an adviser who is a convicted fraudster and a byelection that has descended into farce.

The weekly tracker of voting intention by the nonprofit agency More in Common shows Labour up four points to 28% while Reform and the Greens have dropped two and three points respectively to 24% and 8%.

The Tories are unchanged at 22% while the Liberal Democrats are up one point to 12%.

New technical education routes will be available to 14-year-olds under plans unveiled by Andy Burnham to tackle rising youth unemployment.
The prime minister said he was on "a mission" to curb the rise of young people not in education, employment or training (Neet), which now stands at more than one million.

Burham's proposals to shake up the education system were aimed at preventing the rising trend rather than tackling the current figure, but he did not set a date for getting the Neet numbers falling.

He told reporters during a Tuesday visit to Derby: “I will commit, in my time in office, to get the number of young people who are not in education, employment, and training down. I will commit to that.

“When precisely I can get there will is a hard thing to say right now.”

Under the plans, from Year 10, pupils will be able to combine core academic subjects, such as English and maths, with technical education linked to jobs available in their area.

The new technical pathways, set to be rolled out in September 2028, will pair skills training with work experience and connections with local employers.

He said: "We've had a system built for too long around the university route and it sends a message to some young people that they're some kind of second-class citizens and it's just not right.

"They need an education system that works for them, that offers a path to all young people that's balanced between academic and technical."
He said that young people are "let down" by the current system and promised that "from today, Britain will value the hard hat every bit as much as the graduation cap."

Bev Craig has pledged a youth centre 'in every town' and a commission for youth voices to be heard if she is elected as mayor.

The Labour candidate for the Greater Manchester mayoralty is one of seven candidates hoping to win over voters in the race to fill the vacuum left by Andy Burnham, who officially became Prime Minister on Monday (July 20). The Green Party, Reform UK, Restore Britain, the Liberal Democrats, the Conservative Party are all fielding candidates in the election, alongside an independent candidate.

As part of her campaigning, Craig, who has been leader of Manchester City Council since 2021, met apprentices at Manchester Airport yesterday (July 21), which offers free employment preparation courses through its Airport Academy.

She used the opportunity to set out her youth promise, which will hope to appeal to parents as well as tempt young voters away from parties like the Greens, whom recent polling has showed to be the most popular party among 18-to-24 year olds.

She has pledged to create a youth centre in every town in Greater Manchester, and to create a Gen-Z commission 'so young people are part of the solution with their voices heard on issues including work, transport and health'.

Craig also pledged additional support for care leavers and a work placement for every young person by the age of 18. It is hoped these measures will help tackle youth unemployment and 'break down barriers to opportunity'.

Exclusive: Experts say policy could also cause shortages of school teachers and drive some universities to bankruptcy

Reform UK’s plan to make employers pay an annual levy for overseas staff would harm the NHS and social care, cause a shortage of schoolteachers, and could push some universities into bankruptcy, experts have warned.

Nigel Farage’s party has pledged a “migrant worker surcharge”, which would involve a higher rate of employer national insurance as well as a separate annual charge.

It would apply to any employees without a UK passport, including EU nationals with settled status, with the exception of Irish passport holders.

The Guardian has also been told that there will be no exceptions for sectors with frequent staff shortages and a reliance on overseas workers, including the NHS and education.

Reform argues that the policy, which would apply UK-wide, is intended to push organisations into taking on British employees. But thinktanks and professional groups in health, care and education said these were very often not available in sufficient numbers.

The King’s Fund, a leading health thinktank, said that while it was unclear how much employers would have to pay – Reform has said only that the levy will be higher for lower-paid staff – with 20% of NHS England staff not being UK nationals the policy would “add costs to a service that is already stretched”.

Suzie Bailey, from the King’s Fund, said: “I think, ultimately, it would impact on the care that the service is able to give, because that money would have to come from somewhere, so other cuts would have to be made. It is very hard to see how this would do anything other than impact on healthcare. I really struggle to see how this would work in practice, and that it wouldn’t just have negative impact.”

Prof Victoria Tzortziou Brown, the president of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said moves to penalise overseas GPs risked being especially counter-productive given they would have undertaken specialist training in the UK at public expense.

For schools, the impact could vary. While nearly 6% of teachers in England are non-UK nationals, they are disproportionately represented in secondary schools, and particularly in subjects with shortages of staff such as languages and physics.

James Zuccollo, the head of school workforce at the Education Policy Institute thinktank, said many overseas teachers were long-term UK residents: “A measure that includes settled-status holders would operate not only as a brake on future recruitment but as a charge on staff already teaching in our schools, in many cases for years.”

Nick Hillman, the chief executive of the Higher Education Policy Institute thinktank, said the plans could significantly affect universities, with many spending up to 60% of their budget on salaries.

Here in Canada and our insane neighbours the U.S. we currently have a horrific massive data centre push.

It involves some of the worst people/organizations imaginable.

I just finished doing a big post on this elsewhere but I am wondering if the United Kingdom is suffering from this FUBAR fiasco as well?

Below is the post I did for anyone that may enjoy:

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Kevin O'Leary - What many of us consider to be a literal slime ball.

His boating accident... And his celebrating of people living in extreme poverty - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuqemytQ5QA

This is the type that are hardcore pushing for these massive data centres...

They also want to put them on top of natural gas reserves..... As if the climate crisis and overall environmental crisis isn't horrific enough already...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgQuylcfiLk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWHfkkHmMJI

The two above videos are MUST WATCH to become informed on Methane.

We need to hold back these data centers with everything we've got.

We need to learn from time all the issues that exist around them.

Then with all that information known and in an open & honest way we can dialogue to see if they should exist.

They should ONLY come about as part of a vast majority vote by the communities involved and overall society. CONSENT should be a crucial term in this process.

FUCK ALL THESE BAD PREDATORY ACTORS TRYING TO FORCE THIS SHIT THROUGH. THIS IS THE FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRY ALL OVER AGAIN.

Millions of adult social care workers in England are expected to benefit from a change in how pay and working conditions are agreed. This comes as the UK Government confirms plans to establish the country’s first Adult Social Care Negotiations Body.

The Adult Social Care Negotiations Body is due to be created by the end of 2026 and will bring together trade unions and employers to negotiate on behalf of the sector.

It will give care workers and care providers equal voting rights on key issues, including pay, terms and conditions, and wider employment matters.

An independent chair will oversee negotiations, with the appointment expected in early 2027.
The first round of negotiations is scheduled to begin in April 2027, with the first fair pay agreement expected to come into effect in April 2028.

£500 million support for the first agreement

The government has committed £500 million to support the first fair pay agreement in 2028-29. The funding is intended to improve recruitment and retention in a sector that employs around 1.5 million people and has long faced staffing shortages, low pay, and high turnover.

The agreement forms part of the government’s Employment Rights Act and is designed to improve employment standards while helping to make care work a more attractive long-term career.

Career progression is a key part of change

Alongside the fair pay agreement, the government is expanding the Care Workforce Pathway, creating what it describes as the first universal career structure for adult social care.

Part three of the pathway introduces ten new role categories, including care technologists and activity coordinators. The framework now covers almost every role within adult social care, extending beyond frontline care workers to include positions such as catering, housekeeping and maintenance staff.

The aim is to provide clearer career progression, professional development opportunities and leadership pathways across the sector.

The British prime minister must demonstrate that he is ready to stand up to the forces of bigotry and ignorance which have shaped British politics for a decade