Andy Burnham will be made prime minister on Monday, and he is already signalling a sharp break with his predecessor. On Saturday, he announced he would scrap Labour’s digital ID scheme – set out only months ago by Sir Keir Starmer – and spend the money saved on “improving” the cost of living. In his first address to the country after being appointed, Burnham is expected to promise “breathing space” on the cost of living crisis.
The incoming Labour leader has set out a distinctly leftwing vision while also pledging to be “pro-business”. But in the absence of leadership hustings or probing interviews, there are gaps in what is known about his plans for government. One of the strongest criticisms he has faced so far is that he has failed to provide the details of what he intends to do.
“Incoming PM Andy Burnham scraps digital ID scheme and pledges £130 energy bill cuts as he prepares to enter Number 10.”
What is known is that Burnham has pledged to take more public control of key utilities such as water, a move that appears likely to begin with Britain’s largest water company, Thames Water. The firm, which serves 16 million customers and has been on the brink of collapse for several years, will be put into a special form of administration until a buyer is found, according to the Sunday Times.
He is also understood to be considering radical plans that could cut household energy bills by £130 a year and make running a heat pump cheaper than a gas boiler. The proposals would change the way household gas is charged and remove some policy levies from bills, at a cost of £3.2bn a year to the taxpayer.
Expect action, too, on transport policy. Burnham has said he would be informed by the transformation of the Greater Manchester bus network during his time as mayor, which included taking the system back under public control from private operators.
Speculation is rife that Burnham will announce fresh plans for drilling in the North Sea. The Labour leader’s team has not publicly confirmed the details of its North Sea policies and whether they would involve new exploration licences or “tiebacks”, where offshore oil and gas fields are connected to already approved production facilities via pipelines. In its 2024 manifesto, Labour pledged to honour existing exploration licences but not issue new ones. The Guardian understands that the tieback arrangements would allow new drilling to take place without technically breaching the manifesto commitment, although any new activity is likely to anger some backbenchers and climate campaigners.
Even before his Makerfield byelection victory made him an MP again, Burnham’s allies had briefed that he would be supporting Shabana Mahmood’s controversial changes to the immigration system. On Monday, back in the House of Commons, he supported the government’s asylum changes, voting in favour.
