Posing under a stained-glass window in an elegant Victorian town hall, Andy
Burnham looks a bit like the altar boy he once was. The coat of arms behind
him bears the Latin motto “aequo pede propera” – “make progress steadily”.
The angelic-looking secretary of state for culture, media and sport, famed at
Westminster for his luxuriant eyelashes, has done far better than that, with
a rapid ascent of the political ladder that has propelled him from the ranks
of new MPs on the back benches in 2001 to one of the youngest stars in the
cabinet in just seven years.
For some time there has been talk at Westminster that Burnham has the makings
of a future leader. Now, on the eve of his party’s annual conference, with
Gordon Brown’s authority crumbling and disillusioned MPs and activists
casting around for a youthful figure to take on David Cameron’s Tories (and
steal some of his gloss), the question of how far Burnham’s ambition
stretches will come under even greater scrutiny. If Labour rebels have their
way a leadership contest could be weeks away.
Is Burnham up for it? Will he throw his hat into the ring? There is a pregnant
pause during which the secretary of state blushes, grins – then pointedly
fails to say he would not be interested.
“Aaahhh, I’ve gone all hesitant. How do I answer that? . . . Who knows what
the future holds? This may sound all corny but I have already gone way
beyond what I thought I would ever achieve in politics . . . whatever I can
contribute to the Labour party I will carry on doing.”
In politician-speak this is a whisker from an open admission of interest in
the top job. It goes further than anything David Miliband, the foreign
secretary, and current favourite to succeed Brown, has said, and will fuel
speculation that Burnham might be intending to stand if Brown is forced to
quit.
Senior members of the cabinet are predicting a “bloodbath” this week at the
Labour conference in Manchester, with the prime minister trailing in the
polls by up to 28 points last week. Things are dire and the party knows it.
Burnham may have a majority of 17,000 – a figure that even with the Tories’
spectacular poll lead should mean his seat is safe – but in the current
climate he is not taking anything for granted.
“I think every Labour MP would be wise to think in similar terms. Anybody who
assumes you glide effortlessly onwards and upwards is very mistaken in my
opinion.”
Lest anyone think the unassuming Burnham is being arrogant, however, he
emphasises that even being an MP is further than he thought he would get in
politics.
A few days ago Burnham was making small talk with supermodels at the Downing
Street reception for London Fashion Week. Moving in gilded circles of
thespians and celebrities is an everyday part of his role as minister for
fun. If he were in danger of forgetting what real life is like away from the
marbled halls of the capital’s theatres and galleries there could be little
starker reality check than where he is now. When we meet he is in a surgery
with constituents in the grim former mining town of Leigh, Lancashire.
The shops opposite his office bear testament to the economic and social
challenges here: a dismal row of neon-signed fast food outlets interspersed
with a bookmaker, two pawn shops, and a fashion outlet called Cuddly Sizes,
specialising in clothes sized 16-32. Next door, Housing Options Property
Shop shows rows of “needs-based” council homes for rent for £65.23 a week.
There can be few places in Britain where the credit crunch will be more keenly
felt, with little margin in household budgets in these parts to absorb
soaring food and fuel prices. This is the modern face of poverty. It is no
coincidence that on the eve of the party conference, with Brown in trouble,
Burnham has chosen to be interviewed here. The gritty backdrop of this town
plays perfectly to the “everyman” image he is quietly cultivating,
demonstrating that he has not forgotten what life is like for those who
never sip champagne at swanky receptions or tip up to a West End show. “I am
not Mr London. Obviously I am the reverse” – a reference to his still strong
Lancastrian accent. “This is where I grew up, and I make a big point of
spending my weekends here.
The heart was taken out of Leigh when the mines went. Culture and sport, these
are the things that give people here hope, aspiration and dreams. I want to
use my job to help bring that to communities like this.”
The son of a receptionist and a telephone engineer, Burnham went to a Catholic
comprehensive school before reading English at Cambridge. His parents didn’t
go to university and it took him two attempts to get into the hallowed
halls, but he was encouraged by his family all the way.
At Cambridge he found the rarified atmosphere, “totally disorientating and the
intellectual arrogance a massive shock”. He dealt with the egos around him
by deflating them with a sharp northern humour. These days he is totally at
home with those who once intimidated him. While on one level he may believe
he has what it takes to be prime minister, on another he claims he is still
dogged by self-doubt, a product of his modest roots.
“At any time in my life, I’ve always just panicked about doing what I do well
enough. I was the kind of person who when I got my first job always thought
I couldn’t past the three-month test.”
Despite his protestations, however, his climb has been smooth and steady
within the new Labour high command, going from researcher to special adviser
to MP to cabinet in less than 15 years. At conference this week Burnham will
unveil the results of what he considers his biggest achievement in the job
to date – the introduction of free swimming for the oversixties. More than
80% of councils have signed up to the scheme.
En route to Leigh his aide tells of his “absolutely relentless” campaign
behind the scenes to persuade other Whitehall departments to help cough up
the £140m needed for the project – part of the drive to end Britain’s couch
potato culture ahead of London 2012.
“I feel incredibly proud of it. It’s beyond my wildest dreams.” It sounds over
the top but Burnham means this. He is a sports fanatic himself, playing
football regularly for the new Labour side with Ed Balls, James Purnell and
the rest of the young bloods. He is passionate about Everton football club,
so heading the ministry of fun has always been his dream job – not just
because it is a free ticket to any sport or cultural event that takes his
fancy (although he admits it is “great for that”) – but because he believes
his department has the capacity to improve lives. “These things make people
happy and healthy, give them a sense of confidence.”
Today marks the national launch of his Find Your Talent scheme, designed to
give children a chance to try out cultural activities and find something
they are good at. If it sounds a bit X Factor, it probably is: Burnham is a
big fan of the hit TV show.
He reveals he takes particular delight in watching flops and chanc-ers
audition, not to poke fun at them but because he thinks it shows a have-a-go
spirit. “I watch it every week with the kids [he has three, aged seven, five
and three]. Even those people who don’t have what it takes to be stars I
love it that they are there, taking it on the chin. In the 1980s, the
culture was far more ‘you should know your place’.
Now we live in an era where there is a sense that anyone can do it, be
famous.” Burnham becomes so passionate about this, I can’t help wondering if
he is thinking about his own ambition – certainly his life story
demonstrates that anything is possible. Yet Burnham is too canny a
politician to leave himself open to the charge of disloyalty, insisting that
now is not the time for a leadership contest.
“The country is looking for political stability,” he says. “In Gordon Brown
and Alistair Darling we have exactly the right two men to be taking this
country through testing times for the world economy. There is no one in
politics who is better equipped or has a finer understanding of the
complexities of the economic situation than Gordon Brown. Increasingly
people will see that experience counts for a great deal.”
Reading between the lines here, he seems to be saying “Let’s stick with Gordon
for now” because the public sees infighting while the financial markets burn
as the lowest form of politics. And let’s not forget that by 2010, when the
next election has to take place, Burnham will be that much older and wiser
and better placed to run himself. Unlike some of the other possible future
leaders in the frame, a waiting game would serve Burnham well.
Can Labour win the next election? His response is so upbeat and enthusiastic
that I wonder aloud whether he is living in the real world. He laughs
uproariously. “Leigh is the real world. How can I put it? I drop the kids
off at school, go about my business, go to the pub, do pretty normal things.
I think someone would let me know if I am not in the real world. I think
anyone in a leadership position . . .” he blushes and hastily retreats.
“What I mean is anyone in government has a responsibility to take heart and be
upbeat about what we have achieved . . .” Fortunately, an aide who reminds
him that a roomful of needy Leigh-ites awaits, saves us from a recounting of
the normal dreary detail of Labour’s happy record.
There will be plenty of opportunity on the conference stage this week for
that. Although how much of it anyone will believe is another story.
