Editorial Critiques Westminster Conventions for Hindering Government Reform Efforts

Burnham’s ambitious plans need room to breathe – and Westminster suffocates change | Rafael Behr

A summer on the road suited the prime minister’s open style, but now the walls of conventional politics are closing in Nothing stays fresh for long in parliament and no one sounds normal. The air, thick with convention, suffocates originality, tuning every voice to the same Westminster pitch. The need to escape that climate is one reason why Andy Burnham quit his Commons seat to run for mayor of Greater Manchester. Or that is how he tells the story. Returning after nearly a decade away, the p...

By Rafael Behr