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Burnham to kick off national tour to hear cost-of-living concerns

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice. Andy Burnham will kick off a national tour this week to ask the public how the Government can improve their lives. Officials said the […]

By deepak Ā· August 9, 2026 Ā· 2 min read

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Andy Burnham will kick off a national tour this week to ask the public how the Government can improve their lives.

Officials said the Prime Minister would be in ā€œlistening modeā€ as he spends much of the rest of August travelling the country to discuss the cost of living.

Having promised to give the public ā€œbreathing spaceā€, he is expected to unveil a series of measures intended to help with bills, following on from cuts to energy costs and a Ā£2 cap on bus fares announced in his first week in Downing Street.

Mr Burnham will also focus on improving high streets and officials said he would use the summer tour to inform his 10-year plan for the country.

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said he would be ā€œgetting out of Westminster and meeting people where they areā€.

They added: ā€œHe thinks Westminster has got used to telling people that everyday hassles – like hidden pricing and consumers being ripped off – must be accepted as part of life.

ā€œHe doesn’t think that’s right. That’s why he’s going to start rolling out a series of pro-consumer cost-of-living measures to give people some room to breathe.ā€

With the fallout of the Iran war keeping inflation higher than expected, the cost of living remains a major concern among the public.

A poll published by Ipsos at the end of July found 30% of people listed the economy as a major concern while 22% listed inflation or prices specifically.

But opposition figures have accused Mr Burnham of ā€œtinkeringā€ with his announcements.

Reform UK’s economic spokesman Robert Jenrick said the Prime Minister should ā€œscrap green levies and taxes on energy billsā€, and rule out tax rises in October’s budget.

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Source: Read the original article on www.standard.co.uk