Good morning. Over the summer, I interviewed more than 40 people who are trying to influence the new Labour government for the Guardian Long Read, among them thinktank(智库) researchers and politicians. The piece, published this morning, tries to work out how radical(激进的) Andy Burnham intends to be. So far, his big idea is to give more power and money to England’s regions than ever before – and while “devolution(权力下放)” isn’t a word that sets pulses racing(让人心跳加速), this plan could be genuinely transformative(具有变革意义的).
早上好。整个夏天，为了《卫报》的长篇特稿，我采访了四十多位试图影响新一届工党政府的人，其中有智库研究员，也有政界人士。这篇今早发表的文章，试图弄清安迪·伯纳姆究竟打算激进到什么程度。到目前为止，他的核心主张是给英格兰各地区下放比以往任何时候都更多的权力和资金——虽说“权力下放”这个词并不会让人心跳加速，但这项计划可能真的具有变革意义。
Yet, since writing the piece, one thing that has nagged at me(让我耿耿于怀) is the wider picture. Local media has been gutted(被掏空的). Mechanisms for scrutinising(监督、审查) local authority finances have disappeared. Local services and the public realm have been vaporised(被蒸发、消失殆尽). Cash-strapped(资金拮据的) councils have made risky investments and gone bankrupt. All of this amounts to something bigger than a single crisis of accountability; the state’s legitimacy(合法性) has been eroded, leaving people disenchanted(失望的、不再抱幻想的) with and distrustful(不信任的) of politics.
然而，写完这篇文章之后，一直让我耿耿于怀的是更大的图景。地方媒体已被掏空，监督地方政府财政的机制已经消失，地方公共服务和公共领域已被蒸发殆尽。资金拮据的市政机构做出高风险投资，最终走向破产。所有这些加在一起，已不只是某一场问责危机；国家的合法性遭到侵蚀，民众对政治感到失望，也不再信任政治。
Burnham is hoping that devolution will renew people’s faith in(重新唤起人们对……的信念) democracy. But the wider context poses huge risks to this project before it has barely even begun.(但更大的背景给这项计划带来了巨大风险，而计划才刚刚起步。) Today’s newsletter discusses these risks and opportunities with Josh Halliday, the Guardian’s north of England editor, who wrote yesterday about the need for greater scrutiny(监督、审查) of mayors. First, the headlines.
伯纳姆希望权力下放能重新唤起人们对民主的信念。但更大的背景给这项计划带来了巨大风险，而计划才刚刚起步。今天的简报将和《卫报》英格兰北部编辑乔什·哈利迪一起讨论这些风险与机遇。他昨天撰文谈到，需要对市长进行更严格的监督。先来看头条新闻。
Five big stories
五大新闻
In depth: ‘A seminal moment … but the risks are huge’
深度报道：“一个开创性时刻……但风险巨大”
What else we’ve been enjoying
我们还在读什么
Sport
体育
The front pages
报纸头版
Today in Focus: The Latest
今日焦点：最新消息
Cartoon of the day | Ben Jennings
今日漫画 | 本·詹宁斯
The Upside
光明面
Bored at work?
上班无聊？