Online Reporter
LONDON — New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham gathered his Cabinet for its first meeting yesterday and vowed to take a “one-team approach” despite purging allies of predecessor Keir Starmer from the government.
Burnham told his top team that he would lead a “cost-of-living government” focused on easing the economic burden felt by millions of people.
“We need to think every day, what can we do just to take that little bit of pressure off people’s shoulders, to give them that little extra sense that help is coming, so they can have that bit of hope that things are getting better,” Burnham said.
He made a small down payment on that pledge by announcing a tax cut on domestic electricity bills that will save the average household about 45 pounds ($60) a year.
The cut will take effect from October 1, Burnham said, with the funding coming from scrapping a plan for digital ID cards announced by Starmer.
The former mayor of Greater Manchester entered Downing Street on Monday after replacing Starmer as leader of the governing Labour Party, becoming Britain’s seventh prime minister since 2016. Starmer resigned just two years after winning a landslide election victory, forced out by his party after missteps and U-turns.
In his first speech as prime minister, Burnham pledged to ease the cost of living, decentralise political power, revitalise industry and end street sleeping by homeless people — a tall order, especially given Britain’s sluggish economic growth in recent years.
Newly appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey leaves number 10 Downing Street, as new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has entered number 10 Downing Street.
Burnham acknowledged at the Cabinet meeting that the government would have to make difficult financial decisions and “take a really hard look at what our priorities are.”
Starmer’s finance minister, Rachel Reeves, was ousted, replaced by John Healey, a former defence secretary who resigned in June and accused the Treasury of failing to spend enough on the military at a time of rising threats. In an interview after he quit, Healey called the Treasury “a dead hand on dynamic government” and “in denial.”
Healey has said defense spending, due to be 2.6 percent of GDP next year, should rise to 3 percent by 2030. Now he will have to find the money.
Wes Streeting, whose resignation as health secretary in May helped topple Starmer, took over the defence portfolio.
Other key Cabinet appointees include Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, who has an expanded brief that includes innovation and science.
Louise Haigh, a key Burnham ally who helped engineer his rise to the top, was named First Secretary of State and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, effectively the deputy prime minister.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who has overseen contentious rules designed to reduce immigration, kept her job.
Burnham has huge support from the party that is desperate for a new leader to reverse its decline in popularity under Starmer.
But there is some grumbling after Burnham removed several of Starmer’s senior ministers including ex-Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, former Business Secretary Peter Kyle and Starmer’s chief secretary, Darren Jones. – AP.
