Andy Burnham's vision – to reground the Labour party in a sense of place, tradition and belonging – began over a decade ago, rising from the rubble of the Blair and Brown years.

Off the back of the party's 2010 defeat, figures now key to his government argued that Labour had become too centralised; too detached from working class voters.

Now, Burnham wants to revive "community" as both a value and a means of reforming the UK.

Is this the era of "Woke Blue Labour"?

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by editor-in-chief Tom McTague.

Read: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2026/08/are-we-living-under-woke-blue-labour

Is supporting North Sea drilling an extremist position? Does Jeremy Clarkson have the right to ask benefit claimants for a thank you note? And should you grass on naughty neighbours breaking the hosepipe ban?

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Oli Dugmore to discuss some of the biggest questions of the week.

📚 READ

Supporting North Sea drilling is an extremist position

https://www.newstatesman.com/comment/2026/07/north-sea-drilling-is-an-extremist-position

The road to Nowhereville

https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2026/07/the-road-to-nowhereville

In the summer of 2024, riots tore through British towns, and since then old questions have continued to resurface about who belongs in the country.

Taj Ali has spent years digging into a history that's rarely told in full: the long tradition of South Asian political activism in Britain.

His debut book, Come What May, We're Here to Stay, traces that tradition and asks what it means for Britain now.

Taj Ali joins Tanjil Rashid.

Why did Kemi Badenoch allow a man with a neo-Nazi past to stand as a council candidate? Is Andy Burnham running into his first bump in the road as Prime Minister over his pausing of the early release of prisoners scheme? And could Reform and Restore set aside their differences and form a pact?

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by political correspondent Ethan Croft.

For ten years Gianni Infantino has run FIFA more or less unchallenged - cosying up to Putin, the Saudis, and above all Trump, and turning the World Cup into the most commercially aggressive tournament the sport has ever seen.

Then a few weeks ago, it emerged he'd been secretly negotiating to sell a fifth of FIFA's business to outside investors for $20 billion. The plan collapsed within days, under a revolt from football associations around the world.

For some time, Zack Polanski's tenure as Green Party leader had been largely characterised as a success.

But he's been having a turbulent time in recent weeks. He was accused of inciting violence with an Instagram post, failed to steal the Manchester mayoralty from Labour, and the party is becoming increasingly divided on the subject of defence of spending.

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by political correspondent Megan Kenyon to discuss.

The best day of Andy Burnham's life, Chris Philp goes gonzo in the Channel, and more climate change denial in a burning country.

Anoosh Chakelian and Will Dunn round up some stories you might have missed this week.

Every year, more libraries across Britain close their doors.

As councils have their funding slashed, these are often the first spaces to go.

What do we lose when we stop reading and collecting? What is a library to a community, beyond its books?

Tanjil Rashid is joined by the University of Oxford's Bodley's Librarian, Richard Ovenden.

Andy Burnham's policy and comms blitz powers on - he is setting out his intentions early, and with a very different style than his predecessor.

Meanwhile, on his second week, his government is fully appointed, but the fallout is still rumbling away in the background.

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Ailbhe Rea and Tom McTague to discuss.

For decades, hell, even centuries, there's only been one show in town for the British right - the Conservative Party.

But now, as the British electoral system complains and convulses and shudders and shrieks, a right-wing party has been at the top of the polls; it's just not the Tories.

Broadcaster, author and political commentator Iain Dale joins Oli Dugmore to discuss Reform, Restore, and the potential revitalisation of the Conservative Party.