About this episode

The episode discusses the potential political ambitions of Andy Burnham and the strategies being developed by his allies ahead of the Makerfield by-election.

Westminster may look busy but are MPs just waiting for the potential return of Andy Burnham? With the Makerfield by-election just over a week away Burnham insists he's focussed on winning the seat. But behind the scenes allies are already developing ideas that could underpin a future bid for No10. Sam Coates and Anne McElvoy look at who is moulding the Burnham project and why certain plans for the economy and AI are attracting growing scrutiny from Westminster and the City. You can get the full list of candidates standing in the Makerfield by-election here.

People in this episode

Hosts: Sam Coates, Anne McElvoy

Topics covered

• politics
• by-elections
• Andy Burnham
• Westminster
• economic plans
• AI scrutiny

Keywords

• Andy Burnham
• Makerfield by-election
• Westminster
• political strategy
• AI
• economy
• Sam Coates
• Anne McElvoy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Westminster

Places: Makerfield

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• Belfast violence prompts fight on the right · June 10, 2026 · 21 min
• Why Burnham agrees with Farage · June 9, 2026 · 18 min
• Will Keir fight on? · June 8, 2026 · 21 min
• Could Andy Burnham build to victory? · June 4, 2026 · 21 min
• Life after Keir - will it be coronation or contest? · June 2, 2026 · 21 min

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