Andy Burnham’s Hot Headlines at Party Conference

When Labour Party conference rose to its feet this afternoon to applaud the (theoretical) renationalisation of (some) water utilities, you may have thought you were witnessing the apex of Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s speech. And yet this policy turned out to be merely the first of four “hot” headlines that we sent to Bloomberg Terminal users. For those unaware, a hot headline is significant enough to be FLASHED IN RED to financial workers across the world — and I don’t believe we’ve previously sent four off the back of a British PM’s conference set-piece.

After the water policy, Burnham’s three other major announcements were:

The apparent scrapping of the so-called triple lock on pensionsA pledge in Labour’s next manifesto to change Britain’s electoral system A decision on Britain’s long-term relationship with the EU

It was a party-pleasing performance from Burnham, striking dozens of notes at the heart of Labour’s left-leaning sensibilities. Collective ownership, the National Health Service, working class aspiration. The packed auditorium was moved to hysteria at times, with cries of “I love you, Andy” and “Go on, Andy!” But more on that later.

What also caught my attention was the moment Burnham broke off to address non-Labour members watching from afar. “You may disagree with some — or all — of what I’ve said today, but I have given you what you often say is missing from politics: honesty, ideas and a clear direction for the country we all love.” We may not have all the detail on these policies yet but it’s hard to argue that he’s not being honest. These are seriously tough areas to chuck into a national debate, none more so than the question of who should pay for social care.After all that, there were the water-works. Not Thames Water, but rather the tears that swelled in Labour-red eyes of cabinet colleagues and party activists as Burnham choked while speaking of his father who died earlier this month.

“Whatever its flaws, this country gave my dad a good life, and it has given his sons opportunities he didn’t get for himself,” the Labour leader said, citing a quip by Scottish First Minister John Swinney, who’d claimed Burnham would be the last prime minister of the UK.

“The United Kingdom my dad represented is the one I believe in — a union of nations that gave trade unions and the cooperative movement to the world, the National Health Service, a country that stood up to fascism, a country of solidarity, not separation. That’s the Britain that my dad represented.”

It was as resounding a piece of rhetorical support for the union as I can remember and delivered another, intensely emotional standing ovation.

Want this in your inbox each weekday? You can sign up here.

Stories you need to know

Why Burnham Wants to Scrap the UK Pension Triple LockOpenAI Scraps Debut of AI Model as It Sets New GuardrailsNorthern Ireland Powersharing at Risk As March Tensions SimmerData Center Turns to Gas as Burnham Moves to Fix Grid Delays

Markets Today: Big Spender

Hi, I’m Sam from the MT blog and while bond markets didn’t react very much to Burnham’s speech, here in the office we’ve been discussing how much of the prime minister’s address appeared to point to some hefty future spending.

The measures on housing, water, energy, social care, education — basically every major policy would require cash, and lots of it.

It could be that markets were broadly anticipating that. This is a party conference speech after all, not the budget. It is designed to play much more to party members than to investors. Details should arrive in a month’s time. Bond traders want the details more than the big ambitions.

Even so, the main takeaway as we digest what the prime minister said is that he’s intending some major changes to the way the UK functions, many of which will result in fierce political fights. But whether they’re contentious or not, they are all going to cost a pretty penny. Or maybe a pretty few tens of billions of pounds is more accurate.

Read the Markets Today live blog for rolling news and up-to-the-minute analysis during UK market hours.

The big number

5.383%The UK government paid the highest yield since 1999 at an auction of 10-year debt.

One Big Story

Europe’s Shift Is Breaking the Economics of Gas StorageThe loss of steady year-round Russian pipeline gas following the war in Ukraine means Europe has become more reliant on global liquefied natural gas supplies. Now, the US-Iran conflict that has choked off crucial supplies from the Middle East.

More from Bloomberg

Enjoying The Readout? Check out these newsletters:

Markets Daily for what’s moving in stocks, bonds, FX and commoditiesOdd Lots for exploring the most interesting topics in finance, markets and economicsMoney Distilled for John Stepek’s daily newsletter on what market moves mean for your moneyThe London Rush for getting briefed ahead of your morning callsMerryn Talks Money for micro to macro thoughts on your money and investments

You have exclusive access to other subscriber-only newsletters. Explore all newsletters here to get most out of your Bloomberg subscription.

Please send thoughts, tips and feedback to readout@bloomberg.net. You can follow Bloomberg UK on X.