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Andy Burnham will call for more public control over water, energy and transport in his first appearance in the House of Commons since becoming Prime Minister.
Mr Burnham will use his Commons debut as Prime Minister on Tuesday, his first appearance at the despatch box in 16 years, to argue that stronger public control over many of the country’s services can be an engine for economic growth.
The Prime Minister is expected to set out his belief that essential services have not been run in the public interest, and that they have become neither reliable nor affordable, holding back households and the wider economy.
The Guardian, which first reported details of the Commons statement, said Mr Burnham will make public control over important services a priority for the Government over coming months.
A No 10 source said: “Andy is optimistic about our country’s future.
“He has a clear plan for how we turn things round.
“He is determined we make this the moment we bring back hope.”
Tuesday’s statement to Parliament will also be a chance for MPs across the House to probe the Prime Minister on the slew of policies he announced over the summer.
This includes a run of proposals to help families and businesses deal with rising living costs, such as the cut to VAT on energy bills which comes into force in October, and slashing business rates for pubs and clubs.
Mr Burnham is expected to face a two-hour grilling from MPs when he stands up in the Commons on Tuesday, and he will undergo further scrutiny in the chamber on Wednesday when he faces off against Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch for his first Prime Minister’s Questions.
Mrs Badenoch on Bank Holiday Monday reshuffled her shadow cabinet, sacking Tory big beasts such as Sir Mel Stride and Dame Priti Patel, ahead of Parliament’s return.
Bridget Philipson, Labour Party chairwoman, said Mrs Badenoch’s shake-up of her shadow cabinet shows the Conservatives “have learnt nothing since they were kicked out of office by the British people”.
She said in a statement: “Promoting a key architect of Liz Truss’s disastrous mini Budget tells you all you need to know about Badenoch’s complete lack of judgement.


