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Neal Lawson (This major Makerfield victory has made it inevitable: it’s now time for Keir Starmer to step aside, 19 June) describes Andy Burnham as “open, inquiring and imaginative”, and representative of “a workable alliance for long-term change”.

I know this to be true, having seen first-hand how he operates when the cameras are off. As chair of the Greater Manchester independent inequalities commission and an adviser to its “prevention demonstrator”, I’ve witnessed him systematically use research and frontline expertise to underpin successful regional policies.

When we delivered our inequalities report, it wasn’t shelved; Andy used it to pivot the entire city-region towards tackling the wider and interconnected determinants of a thriving population and place. His rare commitment to co-designing policy alongside experts and communities offers a proven, scalable blueprint for national renewal.

But if he becomes our next prime minister, he will need strong support to be able to prioritise social and economic policies that are demonstrably effective and cost-effective but politically challenging. A new national institute for social change, based on the methods underpinning our National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, could underpin better medium- to-long‑term policymaking.

Being able to quantify the payoff later of investment now in social and environmental infrastructure would help to get around the limitations on bold politics that are imposed by short-term thinking and electoral cycles. A pipeline of independent, objective and rigorous guidance and information could be transformative for improving our politics.
Kate Pickett
Professor for the public understanding of social science, University of York

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