Burnham will change No 10 ‘boys club’ briefing culture, says Lucy Powell

Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, asserted that Andy Burnham would dismantle the "boys club" culture of factional briefings at No. 10 Downing Street, which she claims silenced critics and fostered fear.

“

It created more of a culture of not feeling that you could speak out on things… for fear of giving you a black mark against your name. That is the culture and the atmosphere that we really need to address.

Powell recounted personal experiences of "unpleasant" briefings that left individuals hesitant to speak out or challenge the government's position. She believes this atmosphere hindered people's ability to perform their jobs effectively, creating a "culture of not feeling that you could speak out on things... for fear of giving you a black mark against your name."

“

There was very clearly a pattern over time of anonymous nasty briefings against colleagues being disproportionately meted out to women.

She identified a "pattern over time of anonymous nasty briefings against colleagues being disproportionately meted out to women," including herself, the education secretary, and the foreign secretary. Powell also criticized the "factional" nature of appointments, suggesting they were based on "which faction or which friendship group you were in" rather than meritocracy.

“

It was not a meritocracy in any sense and not a broad church.

Powell expressed confidence that under Burnham, No. 10 culture would improve, emphasizing a push for a "meritocracy where appointments are made in a more open way based on people’s passions, experiences and contributions." Burnham himself has vowed to dismiss any staff found briefing negatively against women in his team, stating their "feet wouldn’t touch the floor."

“

I want to make it clear that if anyone in my team was found to have done that [negative briefing] they would be out of the door. Their feet wouldn’t touch the floor.