The party needs vitality and verve to make a breakthrough – not the dated, ‘sensible Labour’ approach that Starmer favours

Before the resumption of its civil war yesterday, the Labour party, largely thanks to the heroics of Andy Burnham, was actually having a pretty good month where leadership is concerned.

The Greater Manchester mayor’s barnstorming press conferences in October were, on the surface, about opposing tier 3 restrictions for his city and securing a decent financial support package from a grudging Tory government. But the response to Burnham’s soapbox moment quickly developed into something bigger.