Andy Burnham, the UK’s new prime minister, delivered his first speech in Downing Street without notes or a lectern. Visually, it was a departure from the (many) first PM speeches the country has witnessed recently. And materially too, Burnham was attempting to create some clear water between himself and his predecessors. The speech was Burnham’s first real chance to introduce himself to the country – this is what voters can learn from it.
Of course, voters in Greater Manchester won’t need any introduction to the man who served as their mayor for nearly a decade. Burnham is inextricably linked to “Manchesterism” – a model of place-based politics that
may soon be rolling out all over the UK. But this article in our series on the subject explains why Manchesterism as an idea will always be bigger than any one politician.
A couple of years ago, scientists began to wonder whether rapid declines seen in Arctic sea ice may be easing. But now a new study suggests that the previous trend was real and that ice levels are still dropping. Rather than a steady decline, it may be that in years to come these fluctuating measurements become the norm.
