The first few weeks of a new Prime Minister’s tenure can end up defining them for years to come, for better or for worse.
New leaders naturally want to quickly grip the news agenda, spread their message, and bed in a narrative with voters that can survive through good times and bad.
It’s no surprise then that since he walked into Number 10 Andy Burnham has been making promise after promise.
And they may look good at first glance, but what about the details behind them?
Burnham’s energy bill cut, we are told, will be paid for with money originally intended for the Government’s now-abandoned Digital ID scheme.
But as even outgoing Labour ministers have highlighted, that scheme was never funded – so we have no idea where the money will come from.
And of course, bills have gone up by £294 under Labour – so £45 off really doesn’t cut it anyway.
And what about Burnham’s pledge to end rough sleeping? It is an important ambition, but we have been given no detail as to where the £340 million cost will come from.
It should also be noted that Burnham made the same pledge as Mayor of Greater Manchester but since 2021 rough sleeping there has actually increased.
With Burnham it’s looking like more of the same from Labour. Unfunded policies that we will have to foot the bill for in higher taxes.
We are already paying far too much.
Watch Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Mel Stride explain how Labour’s spending will affect us 👇:
All in all, Burnham has already run up a potential bill in excess of £50 billion.
So where is this money coming from?
Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves came to power without a plan for Government, so they ended up doing what their left-wing backbenchers wanted, and hiked taxes to pay for more welfare.
Now Burnham could be doing more of the same.
There’s a better way.
A Conservative Government would reform welfare and get people back to work. Abolish Stamp Duty Land Tax on primary residences. Scrap business rates for thousands of high street businesses.
And with our Cheap Power Plan we would axe carbon taxes and net zero subsidies to get energy bills down, and get Britain drilling in the North Sea.
Unlike Labour, we have done the groundwork needed to create fully costed plans that will deliver a brighter future for Britain. And our golden economic rule means that for every £1 saved in public spending, at least half will go towards reducing the deficit.
