Substance Over Style: Why Andy Burnham Must Move Beyond TikToks and Sound Bites

There should be no surprise that Andy Burnham exchanged messages with someone posing as Donald Trump’s chief of staff. Downing Street will not say what form the communication took. Most probably, it was on social media. The official line is that “only a few messages” were exchanged and no conversation occurred. Which is odd, because in many people’s eyes a few messages do constitute a conversation, albeit one that is cursory. The lack of shock is that Burnham would be so willing to connect and his chosen method was social media, as he seems perpetually glued to his mobile screen and ready to shoot a selfie.

Take the death of Jason Arday, the University of Cambridge professor accused of obtaining his doctorate by plagiarism and lying on his CV. The Prime Minister felt compelled to comment, calling the case “a tragedy on so many levels.” It is early days in the Burnham reign, but there is a growing feeling that his administration is pandering to populism and showing a desperation to be liked by everyone all the time. How else to explain his relentless barrage of TikTok videos and photo opportunities? He announces a reduction in business rates for pubs while sitting with his Chancellor, John Healey, discussing snacks, ignoring the fact that the £1,000 annual cut will not save any struggling bar.

UK bricks-and-mortar retailing and hospitality face deep-rooted problems with shuttering shops and forlorn city centres. Yet, during a visit to the Met Office on the day an emergency alert about wildfires was sent out, what does Burnham do? He declares that vape shops and barbers should be banned. It makes for an easily grasped intervention, but fails to address why those premises became vacant in the first place. He blithely suggests the return of independent bakers ground down by supermarkets, treating these pronouncements as major news items while broadcasters and the media are placed on full alert.

Other initiatives include ‘Number 10 North’, where he opened an office in Manchester complete with a backdrop featuring the famous black door and the word ‘North’. There have been banalities on solving homelessness and improving social care with cameras present, but no detail. Similarly, Angela Rayner proclaimed she would like to see land around railway stations used for homes—such as the mothballed Mortlake Brewery site near her south-west London home—though stating what she will do and actually delivering are poles apart.

Perhaps the apotheosis of the Burnham administration's keenness to be seen as active was last Friday evening, when government alerts blared across mobile phones warning against disposable barbecues in dry weather. The more this continues, the more it is clear that Labour MPs elected him for his personality and dynamic, relatable public image rather than policy. Being a leader requires delivering real results rather than being “all mouth and no trousers.” As autumn brings parliamentary returns, party conferences, his first set-piece speech, a budget, and international summits, Burnham’s plans and ambition must extend far beyond the next TikTok.