The Latest Breaking News from Alex Nurse

Andy Burnham: what has made the king of the north so popular?

The mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has been selected to contest the Makerfield by-election for Labour. His announcement that he was putting himself forward forced others seeking to oust Keir Starmer as prime minister to slow their pace. And it now seems unlikely that anyone will fire the starting…

The Conversation · May 19

May elections: what five politics experts are looking out for

On May 7 2026, voters in England, Scotland and Wales will head to the polls. Parliamentary elections are taking place in the devolved Welsh Senedd Cymru and Scottish Parliament, and local elections for over 4,850 councillor roles could have huge implications for local governments throughout England. With all to play…

The Conversation · Apr 10

Andy Burnham: what now for the King in the North?

Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, has been blocked from standing for parliament – a step that would have been essential to mount a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer.

The Conversation · Jan 26

Levelling up has been a total failure – here’s the evidence

In the UK’s 2019 general election, regional inequality took centre stage. Conservative candidate Boris Johnson harnessed the widespread pro-Brexit sentiment and capitalised on how the Labour Party had been weakened under Jeremy Corbyn to storm to victory.

The Conversation · Jun 10, 2024

What role England’s mayors have to play in the general election

One of the least spoken about shifts in English politics over the last decade is the move towards mayors. Starting with the establishment of the Mayor of London by Tony Blair in 2000, successive Conservative governments have created 11 mayoral combined authorities, each with its own directly elected mayor, since…

The Conversation · May 29, 2024

15-minute cities: how to separate the reality from the conspiracy theory

Conspiracy theories aren’t a new thing, and for as long as they’ve been around they’ve ranged from the benign to the absurd. From the six moon landings being faked to the Earth being flat, or our ruling class being lizards, we’ve all probably come across them in one form or…

The Conversation · Feb 17, 2023

Merseyside's deadly roads and what needs to change

Lives are being cut short on the region's roads and some feel more needs to be done to tackle a car-led culture

Liverpool Echo · Jan 21, 2023

Relief and uncertainty as Lime Street aims to regain 'wow factor'

Six months later than planned, the scheme has largely been completed but some businesses are still counting the cost of disruption

Liverpool Echo · Jul 31, 2022