Why Andy Burnham’s Labour Conference Pledges Mean Those Election Rumours Won’t Go Away

That’s what Andy Burnham said last Friday as he insisted the next general election will not take place until 2029, the latest it can possibly be.

Parliamentary terms last for five years and prime ministers are expected to govern based on their manifesto pledges.

But Burnham was not the Labour leader at the 2024 general election. In fact, he was not even an MP.

After finally becoming the MP for Makerfield in June, Burnham replaced Keir Starmer as prime minister just a month later.

But while he is now resident in No.10, he is essentially handcuffed to the promises his predecessor made to get elected.

These include Starmer’s “red lines” on Europe – no return to the EU single market, customs union or freedom of movement.

That has not stopped Burnham from dreaming big, though, and in his keynpte speech to the Labour conference on Tuesday, he vowed to bring an end to “politics as usual”.

In that speech, he announced plans to scrap the pensions triple lock in its current form in 2030, with the savings made going towards setting up a new National Care Service.

He said he also wants to ditch the current voting system and, perhaps most contentiously, Burnham said he wanted to start a debate on the UK’s relationship with the EU which could eventually lead to the overturning of Brexit.

These are huge changes which the PM insisted were necessary to turn the page on what he believes has been a disastrous 40 years for the country.

“I accept I may pay a political price,” Burnham told the Labour Party faithful. “But someone has to go through the pain barrier and rip the plaster off.”

Burnham will set out his vision for the next decade when the government published its 10-year plan for Britain in November.

He’s clearly ambitious and wants to prove he is not just looking for “sticking plaster” solutions to the country’s problems.

But if the need for change is so urgent, is it really feasible for him to wait another three years for voters to give him the green light at the next election?

Calling a snap poll would cut his ties with Starmer completely, giving him more freedom to execute his grand plans.

Government advisers are allegedly pushing for Burnham to capitalise on this honeymoon period and get a fresh mandate from the public.

Labour is also polling at its highest level for two years right now, after months of being overshadowed by Reform UK.

But the party’s success is inconsistent. One YouGov survey this week put Reform in the lead, albeit by just a point.

Two mega-polls last week suggested that although Labour would easily be the largest party if an election were held now, their 165-seat majority would be wiped out.

Few Labour MPs support the idea of going to the ballot box early because they fear their own jobs would be on the line.

No.10 sources also told HuffPost UK that claims an election was coming down the tracks were “utter bollocks”.

Listen to this week’s Commons People as we dissect the speculation around Burnham’s election plans and unpack why it has the whole of Westminster talking.

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