Mehdi Hasan

Mehdi Hasan’s polemical take on politics, economics and foreign affairs

Andy Burnham’s dad is upset with me

He says the former health secretary has a different background from the Miliband bros and Balls.

By Mehdi Hasan Published 21 May 2010 12:42

In my G2 piece on the Labour leadership race, I wrote:

So far the contest has resembled a City boardroom. Two Eds. Two brothers. Plus Andy Burnham. All of them white, male, fortysomething, Oxbridge graduates.

Andy Burnham's father, Roy, has been in touch this morning to tell me he "is not happy" and is "annoyed" that I didn't make it clear to the readers that his son, the former health secretary and MP for Leigh, did indeed graduate from Cambridge (and is, of course, white, male and 40-plus) but is actually from a working-class background, state-school-educated and northern.

I'm happy to make that clarification and apologise to Roy if I offended him. I still stand by my point, however, that the Labour leadership race looked like a City boardroom prior to the black, female MP Diane Abbott declaring her candidacy.

Nonetheless, I think it's rather sweet that Burnham Sr is so protective of Burnham Jr, who could, in theory, be this country's next prime minister. Speaking on the phone with me, Roy said the family had working-class and socialist roots, and reminded me that he is a former telephone engineer (his wife, Andy's mother, is a former telephone operator).

I asked him where he'd place his son on the political spectrum, to which he replied: "To the left of New Labour." Intriguing. I also asked him who he thought Andy's main rival for the leadership was, to which Roy replied, without hesitation: "David Miliband. The front-runner. But with a four-month contest anything can happen. It's a long time."

Indeed, it is.

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Tags: Andy Burnham David Miliband Labour leadership

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39 comments

Sun, 2010-05-23 21:50 — tomhughes

There's only one thing I want to know about a candidate: is he, like James Purnell, a free marketeer, or his a democractic socialist.

Reading Chris Fitch's blog (21 May 2010 at 12:06) confirms my belief that he is a closet free marketeer.

Like Blair, Brown and Mandelson!

Mon, 2010-05-24 00:52 — Swimming with Sharks

...and just when I thought it couldnt get any worse...mehdi writes for the guardian.

youve been upsetting a lot of people recently havent you? You are marmite indeed.

Burnham is another champagne socialist, you know the types...its become almost commonplace now. Labour has completely lost its connection with the "working classes", and has barely clung on to the support of a class they created, the "shirk-work class."

Burnham is very smart. He could indeed be a strong challenger to dave miliband. But i'm pretty sure they have both played croquet at a manor house in celebration of working class heroism...

Fri, 2010-05-21 12:44 — jeremiah

I wonder if someone from Andy's background would get into Cambridge, Parliament and the Cabinet today.

Social Mobility, you gotta love it!

Fri, 2010-05-21 13:06 — Chris Fitch (not verified)

Whether he is from a working class background or not, actions speak louder than words.

It's more the fact that Andy prefers to go to corporate hospitality rather than watch his "beloved" Everton with proper fans, or the fact that he helped prop up and advantage the Premier League when an adviser and Minister which has led to the vulgarisation of football, or the fact that in every other Ministerial job he has held, he has been ineffectual or worse.

That worries me more than where he came from.

Mon, 2010-05-24 23:40 — Danielle (not verified)

Losing the royal family would go a long way to "liberating" this country for the strictures of class. The royal family and all its ensuing barons, lords, knights etc is the embodiment of the feudal system. Even silly magazines like The Tatler wouldn't exist without it. Other European countries have had proper revolutions and got rid of theirs. Why the hell not here?

Fri, 2010-05-21 13:30 — Steven Boyd

Diane Abbott's Oxbridge educated too - it's a bit silly to judge people on what uni they went too.

Fri, 2010-12-10 01:16 — Greg (not verified)

We haven't had a revolution largely because our aristocracy has long been 'permeable': people from outside it have been able to marry into it, and others to enter it by elevation to the House of Lords. This contrasts greatly with pre-revolution France, where membership was closed to outsiders. Members of the French bourgeouisie couldn't ever join the upper class, however well respected they might be, and thus had little interest in ensuring its continuation or even survival...

Fri, 2010-05-21 13:30 — Liz McShane

Jeremiah - re Oxbridge - I think so. It's about academic ability & educational aspirations surely. I do agree that people from working class backgrounds who are academic achievers lack the self confidence or possibly arrogance/entitlement to rule the country self belief of their peers from private/public schools. That is one of the main differences.

Fri, 2010-05-21 13:33 — Austin Lane (not verified)

Did you offer Burnham snr the opportunity to speak off the record - or was he quite happy for you to reprint the contents of a private conversation?

Fri, 2010-05-21 13:56 — Aliqot (not verified)

So John McDonnel is the only non-Oxbridge. But he has a degree from Brunel and a masters from University of London , Birkbeck, so is clearly not lacking in the grey cells either.

Fri, 2010-05-21 14:10 — Nathaniel Simpson

Is it Oxbridge for 1st degrees all round?
For second degrees you can go from anywhere to Oxbridge, but getting into them requires the separate entrance exam that people from some back grounds wouldn't think to try and take.

Fri, 2010-05-21 14:18 — davidk1

Burnham's an Evertonian. He gets my vote just for that reason.

Come on you Blues!

;-)

Fri, 2010-05-21 14:30 — Will Avery

@Nate A separate exam hasn't been required in a very long time, at least thirty years. "Conditional offers are likely to be AAA", says the Oxford website

Fri, 2010-05-21 14:55 — Steven Boyd

There are subject specific entrance tests though. I still fail to see the problem with what university they went to. Oxbridge is typically dominated by the upper and middle classes, sure, but some of the working class do it make it there and by god I hope the ones who do are on our side.

Nor should the candidates' backgrounds in general be decried. Would we be complaining if Tony Benn was younger, still an MP and standing? I sure as hell wouldn't.

Plenty of candidates and diversity among them are very welcome but let's not be attacking candidates for trivial things before we truly know what they stand for.

Fri, 2010-05-21 14:58 — Ali (not verified)

Chris Fitch if you want someone from the terraces, David Miliband has an Arsenal season ticket and sits near me in the cheap seats!

Fri, 2010-05-21 15:18 — ROBERT TAGGART (not verified)

A.B. was interviewed yesterday (20/05/10) by Gordon Burns for BBC NorthWest Tonight.
Burns did well (for BBC type !)and brought out this admission from A.B. "I am a team player" (or words to that effect. He had defended G.Brown after the 'bigot' scandal, now ?... now he admits he only did so because he supports the Liebour party 'right or wrong'. So ? so methinks him to be a little creep. As for his 'boyish' looks, well, who could take him seriously ? !

Fri, 2010-05-21 16:31 — James Maddock (not verified)

This article is just snidey.

I respect the man for sticking up for his son.

Fri, 2010-05-21 18:18 — yoctobarryc

I really don't understand all this fatuous dismissing of people just because they went to oxbridge.

What's wrong with oxbridge? Do you think they are rubbish universities?

As for the idea that John McDonnell and Dianne Abbot of a superior background to the mainstream leadership candidates: Dianne Abbot went to a grammar school, sends her child to a private school. John McDonnell was a council chief exec for many years.

Personally I have nothing against these backgrounds. I went to a private school, I think it was a monumental waste of money on the part of my parents in retrospect, but I don't think I'm a worse person for it.

I like to think that as a broad-minded person, I am compassionate and I care about the plight of others.

The damaging charge about David Cameron is not that he went to Eton & Oxford, and that this upbringing makes him unsuitable for leading the country.

The damaging charge is that he does not seek to look outside his background, and gives the impression that he thinks everyone lives in similar upper-middle class circumstances as he did.

Fri, 2010-05-21 19:07 — Ian Leslie (not verified)

"Sweet"? You're patronising arse, aren't you mate?

Fri, 2010-05-21 19:50 — Striker

Now that Labour is in opposition all the runners and riders will say what ever it takes to get the job as leader and will shout from the roof tops how socialist their roots are. It's a pity those socialist roots hid themselves so well in the cupboard when Labour was in goverment

Fri, 2010-05-21 20:03 — Irene (not verified)

What is it with labour and class!!!

Fri, 2010-05-21 21:17 — jeremiah

@Irene. Maybe the name of the party is a giveaway.

Labour was founded to represent Trade Unions and their members in Parliament.

Many senior people in the history of the party have forgotten this fact at their peril.

Or are you one of these dolts who think the class system either doesn't exist or if it does it has no impact on anyone's life chances?!

Fri, 2010-05-21 22:19 — Daniele1

Correct Jeremiah!
The class system in Britain is alive and well and IS the elephant in the room. Ask any foreigner because THEY can see it! And it's HUGE!
The irony though is that most revolutions to liberate "the people", around the world and through history, have mostly been led by leaders from middle to upper class origins. I suppose that was because they were the only educated ones who could understand the power struggles.
In Britain today the upper class still rules the country (sorry Irene to wake you up from this lovely dream!), but very few of them have any intention to side with "the people", a great exception to that being Tony Benn of course.
The worst are those very few working or lower middle class "lads" who made it and then go on to join the other side. Shame on them!Thatcher comes to mind.
A most British occurrence unfortunately!

Fri, 2010-05-21 22:46 — jeremiah

Well said Daniele, well said! Most working or middle class people who make it to the top in the UK have a unfortunate tendency to kick the ladder away.

The class system is like any other great British institution in that it has changed and evolved over the years. However it still with us and is pervasive as ever

Yo Irene! It exists, deal with it!

Sat, 2010-05-22 09:37 — swatantra nandanwar

Andy Burnham White working class Liverpool made it to Uni
Dianne Abbott Black Woman Hackney child of immigrants
Cameron Clegg Public School white southern male priveliged
The choice is opportunity for all or just the few priveliged.

Sat, 2010-05-22 10:09 — steve (not verified)

Does not really matter whether he was educated on the moon. Labour are finished and will never get back into power.

The progressive revolution is underway and the Lib/Con coalition is leading the way.

Sat, 2010-05-22 13:00 — Nick9

Mehdi, could we see start a blogg on what everyone thinks about Cameron voicing a view that as we are not in the Euro; we should not form any part of a help package for Greece? It would be interesting to see what people have to say?

Sat, 2010-05-22 17:31 — CrISpY DuCk

What a shock Diane Abbott putting herself forward after firmly putting the boot into any possibility of a Lib/Lab pact.Self serving opportunist and thankfully not a cat in hells chance.Although me and Andy Burnham share a passion for Everton FC I'll stick with Ed Milliband. Mr Balls needs to change his name or face being lampooned by the Sun/Star etc for evermore.Sad but true in these X Factor times we live in.

Sat, 2010-05-22 19:03 — Barry Allen (not verified)

In your original article, you extol the virtues of Chukka Umma. Yet, here's a bloke who is public school educated. Can't we find a candidate who at least represents the background of most of the country, at least in the educational sense?

Sat, 2010-05-22 19:42 — jeremiah

@Nick. Here is my answer. Greece can get stuffed. They are not getting a dime from us and rightly so.

The Euro is a terrible idea and thankfully appears to be coming unstuck. We are not a member and therefore we should not have to pay.

Sat, 2010-05-22 19:51 — Joseph Wilson

Mehdi,
why do you have to refer to people as white or black.I find this rather strange.

Sat, 2010-05-22 21:34 — Greg3

@Joseph Wilson

It's because, sadly, like most in the metropolitan elite, he views everything in terms of race. Hence the constant references to black, white, muslim etc when the only thing that really matters is how good a person would be at the job. The day race affects that, Medhi would probably cry racism anyway!

Sat, 2010-05-22 22:00 — Rabyrover (not verified)

Every Prime Minister between 1964 and 1997 Wilson, Heath, Callaghan, Thatcher, and Major attended a state grammar school. What's the problem?

Sun, 2010-05-23 00:18 — thinkov

a few aah in disguise here
petty + pathetic = joseph + greg

get s6tuffed with your moronic red herring bollocks

Sun, 2010-05-23 12:06 — A Francis

If Balls becomes the next Leader of the Labour Party. The members will probably be expressing their opinion of the previous two. Blair and Brown, BALLS.