What is the point of Andy Burnham’s ‘cost of living tour’? - Jayne Dowle

Blatant publicity stunt or a real opportunity to engage with ordinary people, Andy Burnham’s ‘cost of living tour’ around the country, starting this week, should deliver some home truths.

Like a medieval monarch in procession, the new Prime Minister is boarding his bus - presumably - and promising to listen to people’s concerns. It’s said that there are worries that although he’s well-known in his own patch, there are possibly huge swathes of the UK where he’s barely recognised - so much like those medieval monarchs, who had to be seen to be believed.

He’s a brave man. Although blessed with more easy appeal than most/many previous PMs, Burnham should take note that the history of senior politicians engaging with the public is not a happy one.

Ed Miliband awkwardly attempting to eat a bacon sandwich during the 2015 general election campaign, during what was meant to be a photo-opp of buying flowers for his wife, delivered the opposite of what it intended, making the now Foreign Secretary look decidedly ill at ease.

The Conservatives seized on it - how could a man who couldn’t even eat a bacon sandwich properly be expected to run the country?

And who can ever forget former Labour PM Gordon Brown being caught calling lifelong Labour voter and pensioner Gillian Duffy “a bigoted woman” on a live microphone in Rochdale after she challenged him over immigration during the 2010 general election campaign?

So here we are, the King of the North on peregrination to find out what the people really think. His spokesman has informed us that “the prime minister is going to be in listening mode to help inform his 10-year plan to bring back hope and make Britain better off”.

Here in Yorkshire, where we’re known for being outspoken, he might not be prepared for what he’s about to hear.

The ‘cost of living’ won’t be solved with a few pounds off our fuel bills and £2 universal bus fares, people will say. It will only be solved by a real commitment to creating, supporting and sustaining employment, paying sensible wages and enough money to actually live on. ‘Real jobs’ in other words.

I was speaking to a retail worker the other day who - fed up with shoplifters - is looking for another job. With decades of experience and no young children to juggle, she wants a role that provides 40 hours’ employment a week, but is struggling to find anything above half this.

If Burnham wants to know why people are struggling, and having no recourse but to turn to benefits to supplement their earned income, he’s going to have to be prepared to get into the nitty gritty of such concerns.

Much is being made of his promise to bring high streets “back to life” by demanding planning permission to be sought for new vape shops and 24-hour gambling outlets.

Many would argue that it’s already too late to reverse this particularly invidious trend. Since 2016 the number of vape and tobacco shops in Britain has increased to almost 2,200, finds the Centre for Social Justice think tank, whilst we have lost nearly 1,800 pubs and bars.

Burnham’s promised 20 per cent cut to business rates for pubs, social clubs, and live music venues in England, starting in April 2027, is welcome, but again, is it too little too late? And any café owners or restaurateurs he comes across will no doubt be ready to ask him why he has not afforded a similar initiative to their own sectors of the hospitality industry.

The full details of his itinerary are still to be announced, but it is to be hoped that the urbane ex-Manchester mayor does not concern himself entirely with urban issues. In our region, farmers and those who rely on the rural economy have strong voices. Is Burnham ready and briefed for the questions about the ongoing drought conditions, the impact successive heatwaves are having on agriculture and the huge and worrying matter of UK food security?

There are other thorny issues he won’t be able to duck. The 230 individuals, including a tiny baby held aloft, crossing the English Channel on one boat, unimpeded by any attempts to persuade them to turn back, are a poignant reminder that immigration is a serious concern for voters, especially those who turned to Reform UK at May’s local elections.

Then there is the matter of early release of prisoners convicted of serious offences including rape and manslaughter; Burnham’s vacillations over the high-profile case of two of the killers of PC Andrew Harper continue. At the time of writing, he had ordered another review from Justice Secretary, Alex Norris to determine whether they will be kept behind bars.