A tightrope PM Burnham must walk
2 min readJul 23, 2026 06:05 AM IST First published on: Jul 23, 2026 at 06:05 AM IST In his first week as Prime Minister of the UK, Andy Burnham is already grappling with what will be one of his central challenges: Delivering change to a deeply dissatisfied public, from a constrained fiscal position. He has walked back the suggestion that he might raise the tax-free personal allowance, citing “financial circumstances”. He has announced measures to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, including a cap on bus fares and a VAT cut on energy bills, and signalled an increase in defence spending with the appointment of John Healey — who resigned from the Keir Starmer government over its failure to allocate sufficient funds for defence — as chancellor. The same question arises: Where will the money be found? Burnham recognised the constraints early on: After saying last year that the government should not be “in hock” to the bond markets, he changed tack, and pledged to stay with Labour’s fiscal rules. What remains to be seen is …
