The Editor's Post: Is Burnham the Messiah the UK’s impact economy has been waiting for?
Many in the social enterprise and impact community are excited by the near-certain arrival of the former Greater Manchester mayor to Number 10. But are we putting our expectations too high? This week's view from the Pioneers Post newsroom.
The United Kingdom is abuzz with excitement about the prospect of a new prime minister. What’s more, many in the Pioneers Post community are particularly pleased that Andy Burnham (so far the only contender for the job after Keir Starmer’s resignation on 22 June) would be the first ever Labour and Co-operative Party prime minister, has already mentioned social value in public contracts this week, and favours devolving power away from Westminster to boost local economies across the country.
(In the UK there’s an alliance between the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party which means that election candidates can stand jointly for both parties.)
Beaming broadly throughout a video on LinkedIn, Rose Marley, CEO of Co-operatives UK, expressed her delight that Burnham name-checked the 19th century founders of the co-operative movement during his speech outlining his vision in Manchester on Monday, and highlighted his emphasis on “good growth” and social value.
Peter Holbrook, CEO of Social Enterprise UK, wrote: “Burnham is the first Labour figure in a long time who feels equal to the scale of the moment”, hoping that his record as Greater Manchester mayor will stand him in good stead to push forward “grassroots growth, trusting places with real power and giving people a stake in real change through deeper participation, community and democratic reform”.
Private equity’s extraction of value from the UK’s public services could be turned around by Burnham, argued Jack Wakefield, head of policy and communications at the Social Investment Business, if Burnham radically reforms the public sector commissioning landscape so that more “challenger” voluntary organisations and social enterprises could break into the market.
One of Burnham’s backers in parliament, Patrick Hurley, who is the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on the social, cooperative and community economy, believes Burnham can and should put the “impact economy not at the margins of the change the country needs, but at its heart”. This, Hurley writes, would build on initiatives already begun under Keir Starmer, including the establishment of the Office for the Impact Economy and the launch of the £500m Better Futures Fund.
It’s all – potentially – very exciting. But it’s too easy to get caught up in our own echo chambers. There have been some notes of caution: as Charlie Wright of the School for Social Entrepreneurs, pointed out: “All leaders seem to be a lot more progressive until they have to operate under the harsh lights of central government.” And one MP heckled during Andy Burnham’s swearing in as a new MP on 22 June: “He’s not the Messiah!” (At least Burnham got the Monty Python joke, responding “naughty boy”.)
What do you think? We’re canvassing opinions to compile a piece about how you can prepare for a likely Andy Burham-led government in the UK: What opportunities might arise for social entrepreneurs and the wider impact economy? What challenges might we face? What do you hope will happen? What worries do you have? Send us an email here.
This week's top stories:
Turning dialogue into concrete action in the heart of the Amazon – Impact Minds 2026 preview
The case for impact-first investing, or why having to pay for impact isn’t a myth after all
The Impact World this Week: 3 July 2026
Top image: Andy Burnham is sworn in at the House of Commons on 22 June 2026 © House of Commons
| Ready to invest in independent, solutions-based journalism?
Our paying members get unrestricted access to all our content, while helping to sustain our journalism. Plus, we’re an independently owned social enterprise, so joining our mission means you’re investing in the social economy. |
