The new leader of the British Labor Party, Andy Burnham, who has just been appointed to lead the party, said he was “ready” for the task entrusted to him and claimed to “have a plan” to do it.
Illustrating the priorities of his mandate, Burnham said that the second objective will be “to build a new politics”, observing that many citizens are exasperated by politics and end up “disinterested” in it. “We weren’t good enough,” he admitted, adding that Makerfield voters had given Labor “one last chance” to change. “We have to seize this together,” he said.
According to Burnham, the party will have to focus on solving problems rather than political confrontation, tackling the big issues that have been neglected in recent years, including social care. The Labor leader then relaunched his fifth pledge, promising to transfer powers from Westminster and Whitehall to the territories. Citizens, he argued, must have greater control over essential services so that they work better and are more accessible.
Calling himself a “pro-business” Labor leader, Burnham promised to help re-industrialise the country and improve the education system, with the aim of giving everyone “a path in life”. «My plan is to bring back the hope that all of us have lacked for too long. People expect us to keep our promises and we will,” he said.
In the closing passage of the speech, Burnham acknowledged that she hadn’t always done everything right. “I’m sorry for the times I wasn’t up to par, but I always gave my all,” he declared, adding that he knew how to listen and learn from his mistakes. “I know what I believe in and I know what I want to do: I have a plan,” he said.
Concluding her speech, Burnham promised to “bring hope back” to the leadership of Labour. “I believe in all of you and I am convinced that we can do it,” he said, receiving a standing ovation and long applause from the audience.