[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-116780-en":3,"doc-seo-116780-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":91},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":20,"is_downloadable":20,"audit_status":20,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":27,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},116780,1099514068365,"Aurelia","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/10000253d8d9f28188e?_k=1776742907772140068",8,"Research & Report","The Independent - July 17 2026 - Opinion and News","Editorial discussion of Mahmood’s potential promotion to Chancellor, weighing criticisms about her economic expertise against evidence of effective reform as Justice Secretary and Home Secretary. The piece examines key priorities ahead: asylum and naturalisation reform and police reorganisation, and assesses the skills needed to command government business, steer the civil service, and win investor confidence. It also scrutinizes likely dynamics with Andy Burnham and warns against a redistributive-only growth strategy. The page further includes political and sports news coverage about FIFA scrutiny of Argentina players’ Falklands banner.","| FRIDAY 1 7 JULY 2 0 2 6 | WWW. INDEPENDENT. CO. UK |\n| --- | --- |\n\nFriday 17 July 2026  \nNews/ Editorial   \nMahmood has the potential tobe oneof the great modern chancellors  \nhabana Mahmood has already acquitted herself as justice secretary, and proved herself to be the most effective reforming home secretary in years. It is no surprise that the word in the Westminster bubble is that she is “nailed on” for another promotion, this time to the  \nrole of chancellor.  \nIndeed, one of the few substantive arguments against Ms Mahmood succeeding the deeply disappointing Rachel Reeves is that she has at least two significant tasks ahead of her – completing her changes to the asylum and naturalisation system, and reorganising the police forces. Events, however, seem to be overtaking her.  \nOne shibboleth that has been raised needs to be dealt with  \nimmediately: that she lacks expertise and experience in  \neconomics. It is true that she is a lawyer rather than an  \neconomist by trade, and her political activity in the field is  \nlimited to a spell as a shadow Treasury minister under Ed Miliband (who, coincidentally, is the man she has now seemingly eclipsed in the scrap to gain control of that same department).  \nNone of that matters. Some of the best chancellors, such as  \nGeoffrey Howe and Kenneth Clarke, have had little or no economic training before taking on the job. What’s more, some of the nominally “best qualified” have proved to be underwhelming. Kwasi Kwarteng was a fine economic historian  \nbefore his ill-fated mini-Budget, and Ms Reeves was a graduate of Oxford (PPE) , the London School of Economics, and the Bank of England, no less. As a statistician might say, there’s no correlation or causation.  \nFar more important for success are the other talents Ms Mahmood can bring to bear: an ability to command her brief, set priorities, steer the civil service, and communicate the elusive“narrative” – alongside a certain toughness, and an ability to win the confidence of investors (with every indication that she is calming the gilts market even now).  \nA more difficult question is how her relationship with Andy Burnham and his team will develop. For an administration to function properly, the chancellor and the prime minister have tobe thick as thieves, display mutual trust, respect and support, and preferably be free of any leadership rivalry. This is not only a matter of personal chemistry, but requires a common outlook and policy agenda.  \nWhether Mr Burnham and Ms Mahmood have all of the above in tandem is so far unclear. They come from different wings of their party, and Ms Mahmood doesn’t lack ambition herself (although, at 45, she has time on her side). She is a traditional Labour rightwinger, and Mr Burnham (in his latest incarnation) is the darling of the soft left, so far as can be divined.  \nIn broad terms, Ms Mahmood seems well suited to pursuing amore fiscally conservative agenda – whereas Mr Burnham, drawing on his experience in Greater Manchester, is temperamentally more expansionist, doesn’t like to say no, and is more inclined to borrow to invest, on social as well as purely economic grounds. In this, he is joined by such powerful figures as Jim O’Neill, Andy Haldane and others.  \nIn a Burnham administration, No 10 (and No 10 North) will likely take a much closer interest in Budget decisions and the economic strategy than Sir Keir has done. But he must not, despite the temptation, make the next Labour government all  \nabout the redistribution of wealth rather than its creation; that is always a fatal mistake.  \nMuch the same might be said of the important subsidiary questions that flow from a growth agenda – adjusting the fiscal rules, taxing wealth, reforming property taxes, and instituting welfare reform. How will he harness the power of AI? Plan for an ageing population? Get energy bills down in the longer term? Forge new trade deals?  \nIf Mr Burnham and Ms Mahmood can agree on all this and more, and carry their MPs with","cbCaipkNqfKH4JQD","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaipkNqfKH4JQD","pdf",59855062,1,132,"English","en",105,"# Opinion / Editorial\n## Chancellor potential and economic qualifications\n## Relationship with Andy Burnham and growth agenda\n# News\n## FIFA investigation into Argentina players’ Falklands banner","[{\"question\":\"Why does the editorial argue Mahmood could become an effective Chancellor?\",\"answer\":\"It highlights her track record as Justice Secretary and as the most effective reforming Home Secretary in years, and emphasizes leadership skills such as setting priorities, steering the civil service, and communicating a compelling narrative.\"},{\"question\":\"What two major tasks does the editorial say Mahmood must handle early as Chancellor?\",\"answer\":\"It cites completing changes to the asylum and naturalisation system and reorganising the police forces.\"},{\"question\":\"What is the news about FIFA and Argentina players’ banner?\",\"answer\":\"Downing Street backed calls for FIFA to investigate whether Argentina players broke rules by waving a banner supporting their country’s Falklands claims during the World Cup semi-final.\"}]","The Independent - July 17 2026 - Opinion and News | PDF",1785668818,333,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":24,"language":23,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":86,"head_meta":88,"extra_data":90,"updated_unix":28},"the-independent-july-17-2026-opinion-and-news","",{"@graph":36,"@context":85},[37,54,68],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,48,51],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":20},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":47},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":49,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":50},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":52,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":53},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/the-independent-july-17-2026-opinion-and-news/116780/",4,{"url":52,"name":13,"@type":55,"author":56,"headline":13,"publisher":58,"fileFormat":61,"inLanguage":23,"description":14,"dateModified":62,"datePublished":62,"encodingFormat":61,"isAccessibleForFree":63,"interactionStatistic":64},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":57},"Person",{"url":41,"name":59,"@type":60},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-02",true,{"@type":65,"interactionType":66,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":67},"ViewAction",{"@type":69,"mainEntity":70},"FAQPage",[71,77,81],{"name":72,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":74},"Why does the editorial argue Mahmood could become an effective Chancellor?","Question",{"text":75,"@type":76},"It highlights her track record as Justice Secretary and as the most effective reforming Home Secretary in years, and emphasizes leadership skills such as setting priorities, steering the civil service, and communicating a compelling narrative.","Answer",{"name":78,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":79},"What two major tasks does the editorial say Mahmood must handle early as Chancellor?",{"text":80,"@type":76},"It cites completing changes to the asylum and naturalisation system and reorganising the police forces.",{"name":82,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":83},"What is the news about FIFA and Argentina players’ banner?",{"text":84,"@type":76},"Downing Street backed calls for FIFA to investigate whether Argentina players broke rules by waving a banner supporting their country’s Falklands claims during the World Cup semi-final.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":52,"og:type":87,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":59,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":89,"canonical":52},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":24},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":92},[93,97,101,105,110,115,120,123,128,131,135],{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":94,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":47,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":53,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":112,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":117,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":119},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":121,"slug":122},30,"research-report",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":127},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":126,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":130},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":132,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":133,"show_sort_weight":132,"slug":134},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":136,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":137,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":138},19,"General","general"]