UK

The housing crisis Andy Burnham can’t fix without breaking the banks

Andy Burnham has made housing his flagship pledge. But the crisis isn’t a shortage of homes – it’s who owns them. Reversing decades of financialised property risks the very crash it was built to prevent, says Brian Green.

Can anyone predict Britain’s political future? A new book tries

Richard Rose’s The Disruption of the British Party System offers a dispassionate, data-driven guide to a fractured political landscape, but its refusal to ask why things are breaking down is also its biggest limitation.

Burnham faces first test on Gaza as more than 80 MPs demand action

More than 80 parliamentarians have written to the new PM demanding sanctions, a full arms embargo and a ban on settlement trade. Andy Burnham apologised for Labour’s record on Gaza before taking office – now he faces a choice between the pro-Israel lobby and the millions demanding real action.

Five ways Burnham could actually cut the cost of living

The new PM says tackling the cost-of-living crisis is his priority, but his first moves – a token VAT cut and a £100m tax break for pub owners – tell a different story. The Left Lane sets out where he could start, from ending Trump’s Iran war to reining in rents and rewarding work, says Alan Story.

Burnham sacks the Starmerites – but keeps their politics

Out go Reeves, Lammy and the rest of the Starmer old guard, but with Healey at the Treasury and Mahmood at the Home Office, the new PM’s top team suggests continuity, not the break with neoliberalism Andy Burnham has promised, says Andy Walker.

Burnham’s new politics: same deal, better delivery

Will McMahon unpacks Andy Burnham’s leadership acceptance speech, finding a warmer voice and a sharper critique of four decades of Thatcherism and globalisation – undercut by a pledge to be “a pro-business leader” that leaves the real distribution of power untouched.

‘Gigflation’: How Ticketmaster and Live Nation are pricing fans out of live music

As gig ticket prices soar 212% since 2000, fans and grassroots venues say corporate giants are creaming off the profits while the live music scene that produces tomorrow’s stars is left to wither.

“Nothing about this was inevitable” – Daniel Trilling on how Britain built its own far right

Author Daniel Trilling joined The Left Lane live to explain why the far right’s rise wasn’t just a grassroots accident – it was made, by the people running the country.

Labour is bleeding voters over Gaza. Friends of the Earth wants Burnham to notice

Friends of the Earth is putting Palestine back on the government’s desk this week – with a Guardian advert, fresh polling on Labour's voter losses and a direct challenge to Andy Burnham.

Durham’s Big Meeting: 200,000 set to march for solidarity as Gala marks 1926 centenary

Banners, brass bands and a century of struggle. This Saturday, Durham becomes the beating heart of the labour movement once again as the Miners’ Gala marks 100 years since the General Strike.