𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Red Ed is a one-man political firestorm, and Burnham is the latest colleague to get singed. If the PM hoped he could stop Miliband starting fires at the heart of government by appointing him Foreign Secretary, he’s quickly been proved wrong. This has simply unleashed the madness on a much wider scale. Miliband seems to have got it into his head that his new role gives him a say in absolutely everything. And he’s igniting rows with one Cabinet colleague after another.

Miliband did it under Keir Starmer too, when he acted like he was running the Labour Party, and in many ways he was. He clashed with Rachel Reeves by rejecting her plan to reduce green taxes on energy bills. He infuriated half the cabinet by blocking North Sea drilling, destroying jobs, tax revenues and the balance of payments. Starmer made a feeble attempt to reshuffle Miliband, but gave up when he refused to leave. Miliband then turned on Starmer, who went down in flames.

Miliband was salivating at the prospect of Burnham making him Chancellor, but for once didn’t get his way. Instead, he’s thrown himself into his new job, with his customary wild-eyed gusto. He’s always been a man on a mission, and now he seems to think he’s cabinet minister for the entire world. He’s been lighting fires in the most politically charged areas: attacking Israel, apologising for slavery and sneakily reversing Brexit. Burnham, who’s proving just as feeble as Starmer, is letting him run riot. Now a huge internal row is brewing.

Miliband is no longer energy secretary, but net zero remains close to his heart. And he’s once again going beyond his remit to make sure Labour policy reflects his own personal agenda, while flicking matches at anyone who gets in his way.

A bitter Cabinet row has broken out over the Heathrow Airport expansion. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, Chancellor John Healey and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds are said to back the £49billion project. Miliband and his protege, Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh, who’s keen to light a fire under her own career, oppose it.

Cabinet members are aghast at the sight of Miliband barging into their territory. That’s our man. The latest flashpoint isn’t just about Heathrow. North Sea drilling, foreign policy, economic growth, AI and data centres are all getting sucked into Miliband’s firestorm.

So what is Burnham doing? Nothing much. Being in charge of a whole country is proving a shock after only having Manchester to play with. This is a much bigger train set, and he’s struggling with the controls. And that allows the likes of Miliband to decide the direction.

There’s a reason Burnham likes talking about his 10-year plan. It’s because he doesn’t have one for next week, next month or even next year. Miliband is full of plans though, as Cabinet colleagues are learning to their cost. This fire is only going to spread. Left unchecked, it could burn Andy Burnham down. Because that’s what Red Ed does.

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