Dear readers — a chilly and unsettled week lies ahead. These were the words that greeted the Mill team in our inboxes this morning. Our guerrilla weatherman Martin Miles might have been describing the mid-May temperature dip, but he may as well have been discussing the frosted days facing the north west’s Labour politicians, who must now try to regroup after a calamitous showing in last week’s local elections.
If you missed our weekend coverage of those results, then you can read our in-depth analysis of Labour’s collapse across the whole of Greater Manchester here, or else arrow in on what went down in Oldham here (the latter piece includes a wonderful picture of our founder Joshi as a younger man, wearing his silk pyjamas, if that’s enough to lure you in).
And quickly, we come to you, our readers, caps in hand. After a phenomenal burst of growth at the end of last year and beginning of this, during which time we grew from 3,400 members to 4,200, we’ve slowed down a little. It happens, of course, but if you have any great stories you think we ought to be investigating, now is not the time to sit on them! Hit us up with any great scoops, leads, tidbits and whatnot here as we bid to continue the march to 5,000. And if you’re not yet subscribed but would like to become fully-fledged Miller, you can sign up via the button below (if you are a subscriber, you won’t see it).
Tomorrow, we’re getting an all-star panel together to discuss: What is the future of Manchester city centre? Six years ago, there was a huge shift in how and where people work — with predictions of doom for city centres. But walk around Manchester today and it doesn’t feel like that’s happened. So how are businesses adapting, what are workers pushing for, and what does it mean for the newly elected council trying to plan what gets built here? Hosted in Manchester’s newest workspace — the brand new Colony on King Street — there will be a drinks reception and lots of time for chat. Book your free ticket here.
Burnham rumours abound
While speculation about Burnham’s supposed leadership challenge continues to swirl, the man at the centre of the rumours remains awfully quiet. Burnham pulled out of a speech on Friday morning following bruising local election results for Labour, with Caroline Simpson, group chief executive of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, delivering the address instead. Since Friday, chatter around his alleged move to oust Starmer has only intensified, though there are fears from Burnham’s supporters that a push for Starmer’s immediate resignation will disqualify the Greater Manchester mayor from standing. Unlike others tipped for Starmer’s spot — such as Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting — Burnham isn’t an MP. The Guardian reports that his backers will advocate for an “orderly transition” away from Starmer so that a contest favouring MPs doesn’t occur.
Just yesterday, Rayner delivered a caustic speech addressing Labour’s local election wipeout, in which she urged the party to “acknowledge” its “mistake” in blocking Burnham from standing in Gorton and Denton. But Peter Kyle, the business secretary, said in his Today interview that Burnham had “made a series of commitments to Manchester” which “should be seen through”. Kyle further rubbished the idea that having a by-election then a mayoral election would be the smart move for Labour right now.
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