Hope again. That was the prime minister’s message to the country this week. A national social care system, greater public control of water and energy, help for first-time buyers and a crackdown on rogue landlords and empty homes. With clarity and conviction, Andy Burnham set out a bold plan to put Britain on a new path, steeped in Labour values.

It felt like a conference speech that would be remembered for years to come, marking a decisive break with a broken political model that has let British people down for decades. And perhaps most encouraging of all was the prime minister’s promise to rethink Britain’s relationship with the EU.

Burnham’s words were simple but stark: “Brexit has done more harm than good.” He is right – and the reality of the vote’s impact on the UK is sobering. Research commissioned by City Hall in 2024 showed that London’s economy was £30bn smaller than it would have been without Brexit and that there were nearly 2m fewer jobs overall in the UK as a result of us leaving. Earlier this year, we set out new analysis showing that our country has grown more slowly than our comparable European counterparts since 2016. If that trend continues, our economy could be £250bn smaller than similar EU countries’ by 2030.

Ten years after the referendum, the sunlit uplands promised by the Brexiters have proven to be a total fiction. Instead, Britain finds itself........

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