Andy Burnham reaffirms commitment to pensions triple lock
Andy Burnham has announced he will keep the controversial pensions triple lock when he becomes prime minister, reports BritPanorama.
The PM-in-waiting has been under pressure from some of his own economic advisers to ditch the scheme, which critics claim protects wealthy pensioners at the expense of the young. He noted that there was a “lot of debate” about the pledge and stated it was “important that the commitment in the manifesto stands.”
Labour’s 2024 manifesto commits the party to the triple lock, which safeguards the rate at which the state pension rises.
In an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on Reddit, Burnham also ruled out an early election and conveyed a desire for a better trade deal with the EU, while sharing that his favourite film is Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas.
He engaged with a question from Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who suggested he should “face a proper press conference.” Burnham acknowledged this as a “fair challenge” but added he had recently faced questions from 74,000 voters ahead of securing the Makerfield by-election.
For someone poised to enter No 10 by 20 July, Burnham has faced little scrutiny over his policy platform and has given only one interview, with LBC. He reiterated he would “work to the 2024 manifesto.”
However, he mentioned he would advocate for one change in the party’s upcoming manifesto: proportional representation.
Burnham expressed himself as a “strong supporter of electoral reform,” citing it as a means to encourage more collaborative politics focused on problem-solving rather than point-scoring.
He intends to persuade his party to incorporate this commitment into the next manifesto. The 2024 manifesto currently emphasizes extending voting rights to 16 and 17-year-olds and addressing House of Lords reform.
On foreign policy, he reaffirmed his backing for Ukraine “100 per cent.” When asked about the potential for negotiating a more ambitious trade agreement with the EU, he affirmed he saw scope for improvement and vowed to build on the “good work” of the current government.
Additionally, Burnham promised to ensure the defence investment plan is “fully funded,” shortly after the blueprint led to John Healey’s resignation as defence secretary.
Addressing youth unemployment, he criticized the trend of solely offering interviews via Teams or Zoom, arguing it does not allow young people to showcase their personality and passion effectively.
Interestingly, he also shared that his current favourite band is Doves and listed his top four films as Goodfellas, The Big Short, Brassed Off, and Pride.
