The Editor's Post: Andy Burnham and the impact economy: real hope or just a show?

When Andy Burnham was about to be elected Labour Party leader and become UK prime minister, the UK’s ‘impact economy’ (for lack of a better word to describe the social enterprise, impact-driven business, impact investing and co-op community) seemed remarkably positive at the idea of having a member of the Co-operative Party at the head of government for the first time in history, plus one that had a track record of working with local social enterprises as Mayor of Greater Manchester.

At the time, Pioneers Post editor Julie Pybus asked: Is Burnham the Messiah the UK’s impact economy has been waiting for? Hopes sunk as soon as day two of his premiership, when many were disappointed to see the much celebrated Office for the Impact Economy relegated from the “heart of government” (the Cabinet Office) to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport – described by a former minister as “not the most powerful department” in government.

But in the months since, positivity has re-emerged. Last week in Liverpool I joined a Labour Conference side event organised by Better Society Capital that brought together members of the impact economy community, including representatives of the social enterprise, social investment and co-operative sectors.

People present were in awe of the emotional speech the PM had delivered just hours before on the conference’s mainstage. Of course, a good performance in a speech doesn’t equate to the hard reality of policy and financial support for the impact economy, but most people there were determined that the PM wasn’t acting and was truly “authentic”.

Whether the Office for the Impact Economy has actually been sidelined remains an open question, but last week everyone was adamant that the impact economy agenda is very much alive across government. Ministers, under pressure to tackle the PM’s key priority issues, are reportedly turning to social enterprises and impact investors as a potential solution. Burnham himself showed the way the previous week, meeting social entrepreneur Josh Turner in New York’s Central Park to discuss how to tackle homelessness.

It was clear from my conversations that Burnham brought real hope for the sector and a belief that the PM understood the impact economy could be a true ally in delivering on his priorities, which include tackling homelessness and driving economic growth that benefits communities in all parts of the country.

In a column this week, Social Enterprise UK’s Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, himself a Labour Party veteran, recounts his experience handing over social enterprise goody bags to ministers and MPs throughout the conference, and the positive conversations that followed. As the government’s agenda looks ever more aligned with the social economy’s, Jovan makes his feeling clear: “For the first time in a long time, it seemed as though a government was not merely paying lip service to the notion of a social economy but seemed committed to building one.”

Only time will tell whether Burnham will deliver on his promise, or if he was just putting on a show.

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Top image: Prime Minister Andy Burnham holds Media interviews in No10 North in September. Picture by Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing Street.