Andy Burnham speech handed bleak assessment by presentation expert: 'Word-shaped vacuum!'

Andy Burnham's landmark speech today has been branded a "word-shaped vacuum" by a top political presentation coach.

Speaking to GB News, Graham Davies shared his bleak analysis of the Makerfield MP's first major address to the nation on his plan for Britain.

Speaking in Manchester, the Downing Street hopeful promised the "biggest rebalancing of power we have ever seen".

He said: "Here in the North West, it will be about offering new opportunities to extend devolution in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland by taking power deeper down, the people of Dundee and Bangor feel just as distant from Holyrood and the Senate, as they do from Westminster."

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Offering his verdict on Mr Burnham's speech, Mr Davies told GB News argued that it "wasn't really a speech", and was instead an opportunity to "develop his self confidence".

He said: "It wasn't really a speech, it was a rather lovely, upbeat, word-shaped vacuum. He's certainly developed his self confidence since his rather grim performances in Wigan and Makerfield.

"He had the air of a bridegroom who was so pleased with himself that he decided to do the best man speech as well. He was offering hope to everyone in every postcode - as long as that postcode began with a capital M."

Mr Davies compared the contents of Mr Burnham's speech to the "opening credits of Star Trek".

He swiped: "I could almost hear the opening credits of a new Andy Burnham version of Star Trek. His declared 10-year mission to seek new Government powers and new levels of Government, to boldly go where every socialist has gone before."

Highlighting the Makerfield MP's decision to not take media questions following his speech, Mr Davies criticised Mr Burnham for "not wanting any scrutiny whatsoever".

He said: "Not only did he not want to take questions, he flagged up the fact that he wasn't going to take questions a good 18 hours in advance.

"And of course, that flags up the fact that he doesn't want any scrutiny whatsoever, especially on the question of where do the numbers come from, where does the money come from."

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Mr Davies revealed the one question he would have "loved" to have Andy Burnham's reaction to.

He told GB News: "The fact that since 2001, 51 local referenda have occurred on the issue of whether there should be a directly elected mayor in that area, and the concept has been rejected on 38 occasions.

"I would have loved to have seen his reaction to that."

Criticising Mr Burnham's plan for devolved power, Mr Davies argued that local politicians are mostly "not of the same calibre as national politicians".

He explained: "It's a fact that local politicians tend not to be of the same calibre as national politicians. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean that national politicians are all that brilliant.

"But inevitably a local councillor or somebody who's elected from being a local councillor to an elected level of mayor, may well not be able to manage properly a budget that may be five or 10 times bigger, that is currently allowed to a metropolitan mayor. That's just one of the facts of life."

Mr Davies concluded that the Downing Street hopeful's slogan to "lift Britain up" could be a "very expensive slogan to bring into practice".

He said: "Those ad-libs were carefully pre-scripted to try and stifle any inquisition, any debate, any dissent. His concept of lifting Britain up is the lowest common denominator of all political slogans, and it's going to be a very expensive slogan to bring into practice."

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