Inside Politics: Andy Burnham sparks Labour rebellion over tier 3 funding

Spurred on by the Greater Manchester mayor, Kier Starmer’s party will force a vote in parliament on fair funding for areas placed under the highest Covid restrictions, writes Adam Forrest

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham (Getty Images)

Winter is coming. And people across the red wall have a new hero. Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham had “King of the North” trending on Twitter after his memorable speech on live TV – a fervent attack on the government’s failure to give workers enough money to get through looming lockdown closures. Despite imposing highest-level restrictions on House Burnham, Boris Johnson’s government still hopes to appease the northern rebellion with a bit more money. But can House Johnson be trusted to pay its debts?

Inside the bubble

Our political commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for today:

The dispute between the government and local leaders in Greater Manchester will likely dominate PMQs. Labour will force a Commons vote calling for workers whose employers are closed under Tier 3 restrictions to be guaranteed 80 per cent of their wages. Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, will open a separate debate on the party’s demand for free school meals to be provided during school holidays up to next Easter – already dubbed the “Marcus Rashford debate”.  

Daily briefing

POKER FACE-OFF: Boris Johnson has ordered Greater Manchester to move into tier 3 from Friday morning after falling out with Labour mayor Andy Burnham and other local leaders. Burnham, who said an offer of £60m to help workers in the area was not enough, is outraged that the sum was then withdrawn and only £22m “basic” support offered. Shown the amount on someone’s mobile while live on TV, he accused No 10 of “playing poker with people’s lives”. The PM didn’t make anything clear during his own press conference, so it was left to Matt Hancock to explain the £60m was still “on the table”. But it’s still not clear what leaders in Greater Manchester will have to do to get it. Labour – in awe of Burnham – will now force a vote on transparent funding deals for tier 3 areas. Red wall Tory MPs aren’t happy with No 10. One told The Telegraph: “We are on the cusp of having Andy Burnham carried shoulder-high through the streets of Manchester.”

BIG DAY IN THE NORTH: The spotlight now falls to other cities in the north – will they fall into line? South Yorkshire is expected to agree tier 3 measures today, with West Yorkshire, Nottingham, Teesside and the North East also set for talks with the government. Down south, Sadiq Khan is calling for the 10pm curfew to be scrapped. The London mayor is now convinced it doesn’t “make sense” and wants pubs to get the extra cash flow. Khan also called the government’s funding plan for Transport for London (TfL) “ill-advised and draconian”. TfL bosses want £5.7bn for the next 18 months – but the mayor says No 10 wants to impose a “triple whammy” of council taxes, higher congestion charge and transport fare hikes. Up in Scotland, first minister Nicola Sturgeon insisted she would not get into Manchester-like “standoffs over money” with local leaders when she brings in her own tiered system of regional Covid restrictions.

REMOVAL MEN: Do any of Boris Johnson’s meetings go smoothly? Top business leaders described a call with the PM and Michael Gove about Brexit preparations as “terrible” and “unbelievably disresepectful”. Gove reportedly told them in his most patronising tone that the end of the transition period would be like “moving house … a bit of disruption but you soon get used to a bigger, better house”. It comes as EU negotiator Michel Barnier held another phone call with his counterpart David Frost, telling the No 10 official: “Our door remains open.” But No 10 said the door remains shut without “fundamental change”. If Downing Street expect the French to make a big gesture on fishing rights, it doesn’t look forthcoming. Clément Beaune, the French Europe minister, said there would be “no new approach”. There is now less than a 50-50 chance of a Brexit trade deal, according to Detlef Seif, chancellor Angela Merkel’s Brexit spokesperson in the Bundestag.

GAME PLAYING FOR TIME: You would think Brexit would provide top government figures enough opportunities to strategise. But Gove and other senior Tories have been busy “war gaming” to prevent a second Scottish independence referendum, a leaked memo has revealed. The 21-page memo by party consultants set out ways to “delay” a second vote on separation if the SNP win the 2021 Holyrood election, according to Bloomberg. It recommended “cooperation rather than confrontation” – saying Brexit has made the traditional unionist argument that the 2014 vote was a “once in a generation” event somewhat redundant. The SNP’s deputy leader at Westminster Kirsten Oswald said it showed the Tories in “panic mode”. It comes as top psephologist Professor Sir John Curtice said women in Scotland were now swinging behind independence, wiping out the “gender gap” that had previously shown far greater support among men.

WE AGREE WITH MARCUS: As well as adopting Andy Burnham’s line on tier 3 funding, Keir Starmer’s party will back Marcus Rashford’s campaign and force a vote today on extending free school meals during the holidays through to Easter 2021. Labour claims that nearly 900,000 children in Covid hot spots will be denied free meals unless the government extends the scheme. Deputy leader Angela Rayner asked whether the Tories would be “happy to let our children go hungry”. Labour MP Chris Bryant is in no mood for playing either. Bryant was kicked off TalkRadio after he called host Dan Wootton “a complete and utter nutcase” for suggesting herd immunity was a potential solution to the coronavirus crisis. Meanwhile Labour MP Stella Creasy has proposed a law forcing businesses with 100 employees or more to publish their gender pay gap data. Her bill already has considerable cross-party backing.

THE BANK JOB: Donald Trump just loves to bash China, but it has emerged that the president actually holds a bank account there. The Republican candidate spent a decade pursuing projects in China – even operating an office there during his first run for president, The New York Times has reported. Meanwhile, Barack Obama is holding his first in-person 2020 campaign event for Joe Biden in Philadelphia later today. His former press secretary said Obama would help “reach swing voters and mobilise younger voters that don’t consume political media throughout the day”. It comes amid a rare outbreak of co-operation in Washington. White House officials and congressional Democrats have entered talks to agree a stimulus bill, with Nancy Pelosi saying the two sides “continued to narrow their differences”.

On the record

“We are asking a lot of the public … we need to carry them with us, not crush their spirit. We took this stand for you, we will carry on fighting for you.”

Andy Burnham says he stood up for the people of Manchester.

From the Twitterati

“Andy Burnham absolutely letting rip at the government for withholding the support Manchester needs... looking like the Clark Kent of Stockport.”

Campaigner Femi Oluwole thinks Burnham’s speech was Superman-esque…

“I’ve forgotten what it’s like to watch a politician who is genuinely articulate, incisive and passionate ... guess I’m part of Andy Burnham hive now.”

...and Vice UK’s Zing Tsjeng is now a Burnham fan girl.

Essential reading

Vince Cable, The Independent: Is Rishi Sunak about to go from hero to zero?

Frances Weetman, The Independent: The Tories supported devolution – until it created Andy Burnham

Martin Fletcher, New Statesman: All of the Brexiteers’ delusions have been exposed

Yasmeen Serhan, The Atlantic: The world leaders who want Trump to win

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