Ali Allsop

Foster carer, potter / art teacher

[kate @leftinista]

reposting in honour of andy’s killer question time performance x

[Andy Burnham for Makerfield @andy4makerfield]

We have to pull back from the type of politics that divides us, and work to come together again.

Andy on question time last night 👇

[Jo Platt @JoPlattLeigh]

Couldn’t agree more with this👇

We can’t carry on down this path.

We must stop the poison dripping into our society.

Our country is better than that.

[Guy Lambert @GuyLambertUK]

Outstanding performance from @AndyBurnhamGM tonight. Intelligent points, proper connection with the community, actual power in his words. Quite a contrast to “two tier” Robert Kenyon and his “cold rage” boss #bbcqt

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@bbcquestiontime Thank God he’ll be brilliant 🌹

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@SimonMagus He���s sound🌹

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

Finally some sense …

[🇬🇧King 🇬🇧 @King0243_PJC]

Just watched Andy Burnham kicking off his campaign up in Ashton.

Proper straight talking, boots on the ground, no bullshit spin, just chatting to normal people like us.

I have never voted Labour in my life, but he comes across as a genuine fella. If he was standing round here he would definitely get my vote.

This is the kind of politics that actually feels real and people are properly fed up with the usual crap. Spot on. @AndyBurnhamGM

[Lewis Goodall @lewis_goodall]

One of the most effective bits of political communication on the left I’ve seen in a long time. A message and a powerful messenger.

[JustG @Little_G2]

Ok someone had to do it …

Andy Burnham walking into Makerfield by election

[LBC @LBC]

‘I don’t know that there’s a higher praise you can pay for a politician than that.’

Caller Kim tells James O’Brien that Andy Burnham’s appeal comes from an ability to ‘make people feel that they matter’.

[Jamie Kay @TheRealJamieKay]

The same people who mocked Andy Burnham for focusing on Greater Manchester are now watching him become one of the most popular politicians in the country.

Turns out improving public transport and talking like a normal human works.

[Manchester News MEN @MENnewsdesk]

TOMORROW'S FRONT PAGE: Andy Burnham has made his move #tomorrowspaperstoday https://t.co/Xg585I890e

[Andy Burnham @AndyBurnhamGM]

I can confirm that I will be requesting the permission of the NEC to stand in the Makerfield by-election.

I grew up in this area and have lived here for 25 years. I care deeply about it and its people. I know they have been let down by national politics.

Ten years ago, I decided to leave Westminster. Why? Because, after 16 years, I came to the conclusion that our national political system does not work for areas like ours. I learnt this fighting its failure to invest in the Wigan borough, for justice for the Hillsborough families and against its treatment of Greater Manchester during the pandemic.

Over the last decade, I have been challenging this failure from the outside and building a new and better way of doing politics. We have built Greater Manchester into the fastest-growing city-region in the UK and put buses back under public control, introducing a £2 fare cap to help people with cost-of-living pressures.

However, there is only so much that can be done from Greater Manchester. Much bigger change is needed at a national level if everyday life is to be made more affordable again. This is why I now seek people’s support to return to Parliament: to bring the change we have brought to Greater Manchester to the whole of the UK and make politics work properly for people.

Millions are struggling and they need the Labour Government to succeed. It has already made changes to make life better for them in its first two years. After this week, we owe it to people to come back together as a Labour movement, giving the Prime Minister and the Government the space and stability they need as the by-election takes place.

I want to recognise the difficult decision taken by Josh Simons and the sacrifice he and his family are making. I have worked closely with him as Mayor on issues like flooding and illegal waste dumping and have seen first-hand how effective he has been. He has put the communities of Makerfield first, made a real difference for them and should take great pride in that.

Finally, I truly do not take a single vote for granted and will work hard to regain the trust of people in the Makerfield constituency, many of whom have long supported our party but lost faith in recent times. We will change Labour for the better and make it a party you can believe in again.

ENDS

[Leah Hardy 🇺🇦 @LeahFHardy]

My daughter is at Keele university in Stoke-on-Trent which isn’t considered a posh uni but which has offered her brilliant teaching and global opportunities I never had. The V&A has a Wedgwood museum there too.

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@AndyBurnhamGM @MENnewsdesk Amazing 🤩

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@NewStatesman @adamlangleben Rubbish!

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@ToryFibs 100 % yes

[Ali Allsop @AlisonMarg]

@EuropeanPowell he is 100% decent 🌹