Burnham, Streeting, and Rayner’s race to No. 10

Burnham, Streeting, and Rayner’s race to No. 10

May 21, 2026 · 1h 5m · Season 1 · Episode 286

About this episode

The episode discusses the rapid developments in British politics, focusing on the leadership race involving Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting, while also touching on the California gubernatorial primary.

British politics has moved at a rapid pace the last week, with Andy Burnham securing his root to parliament, Wes Streeting reigniting Brexit debates, and a defiant No. 10 fighting on through all of it. Ed Balls and George Osborne examine the leadership race, the manoeuvres being made by Streeting to court the Labour faithful and how Burnham is having to campaign on two fronts. Why is the cabinet silent? Is Starmer right to cling on? Will the King of the North be coronated should he return to parliament? What if he loses?  The pair then examine the economic prospectus of both Burnham and Streeting, contrasting it with the cost of living support announced by Rachel Reeves today. They detail the limitations of any government to combat inflation, the holes in plans both contenders have spoken of and the risk a governing party faces openly debating policy like this. Finally, they take a trip across the Atlantic to California and the final stages of the gubernatorial primary. George’s mate Steve Hilton has maintained his frontrunner status amidst a split Democratic field, but can he actually win come November? The odds are stacked against him, but Ed and George caution not to…

People in this episode

Hosts: Ed Balls, George Osborne

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Places: California, No. 10, Labour, Democratic

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