MAYOR of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham told participants at MP Debbie Abrahams’ Working for Your Community Summer School that they will ‘put right the chaos in politics’.
Mr Burnham made a guest appearance at the MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth’s eighth Summer School, speaking to the 18 to 24-year-olds on Zoom.
He said: “I have more trust in your generation than any other generation that’s gone before to put right the chaos in politics brought about by my generation.
“My generation of politicians has brought us to this place where we’re very polarised, very unequal, very unhappy.
“Genuinely, I believe your generation of politicians will come through and will heal this mess that we’ve lived through.”
Participant Ali Raza, from Glodwick and a student at Oldham College studying Business Enterprise, said: “The sessions with Andy Burnham was really exciting and in-depth, helping me learn about how to work in your own community, and was an interesting insight into the world of politics.
“Andy came across as a humble person who wants to help people, especially us as young people and students, and help us decide what we want to do in our careers.”
Mr Burnham also praised the Summer School concept, which was launched by Mrs Abrahams in 2014, saying: “It’s an amazing thing Debbie does running this Summer School each year.
“I regularly come into contact with people who say to me ‘oh you might remember me, I was on Debbie Abrahams’ Summer School’!
“It’s brilliant, and I love it, and I’ll always support it because it’s an amazing thing to do and it will bring through the next generation of leaders.”