Business leaders set blueprint as Burnham pledges 'circuit breaker moment'

Business bosses have laid out their demands after Andy Burnham took office as the country’s seventh Prime Minister in a decade.

The new Westminster chief has vowed to deliver “a circuit breaker moment” through “a new political model and a new economic model” for the country.

And sector leaders have set a blueprint for the ex-Greater Manchester mayor to deliver on his pledges, with action on devolution and economic planning matched by demands across housing and homelessness.

Promising to win over voters “fed up with politics”, Mr Burnham says he will set out a ten-year plan later this year to help “Britain show the world we can regain our stability once again”.

He also pledged to help more young people into work, build more council homes and create a more “preventative state” by investing in people’s success.

Acknowledging his official unveiling, Elisa Sofocli, a partner at London-based accountancy and business advisory firm Blick Rothenberg, said Mr Burnham must provide certainty to help attract investment into Britain.

She said: “Policy decisions must support long-term growth, rather than short-term change.

“Businesses need certainty to invest, innovate and create jobs; a competitive, predictable tax environment will be central to delivering that ambition.”

Reiterating the need for economic confidence, Dr Tony Syme, macroeconomist at the University of Salford, said: “Andy Burnham’s argument is that public control of essential services lowers long-term costs to the state and households.

“Water, energy and transport are precisely where families feel the cost of living squeeze, so this approach targets the right places.

“Scrapping the digital ID programme to redirect money towards household budgets, and his acknowledgement that frozen tax thresholds have quietly eroded take-home pay, suggest a Government focused on tangible improvements in people’s lives.

“The key signal will be his choice of Chancellor; the decision will tell us whether this is a Government of energy transformation and public investment, or one of fiscal continuity.”

Responding to Mr Burnham’s housing plans, Tracy Harrison, chief executive at Sunderland-based Northern Housing Consortium, said: “We look forward to working with the new Prime Minister to give hope back to forgotten places. 

“A good quality, affordable home is one of life’s essentials. 

“Housing-led regeneration – reviving struggling high streets with new homes, developing forgotten brownfield land and renewing and redeveloping homes that no longer meet the needs of communities – can help bring growth to every postcode.”

Nick Leeming, chair of sales and letting agency Jackson-Stops, whose office network spans North Yorkshire to Cornwall, added: “Building more homes is essential, but the health of the market also depends on helping existing homes circulate more freely, so that more people can make the move that is right for them.

“The Government has an opportunity to restore confidence in the market by combining a clear commitment to housebuilding with stable economic management and a serious review of the upfront costs that continue to hold back buyers and sellers.”

North East Labour mayor Kim McGuinness has written to Mr Burnham, calling for him to ensure devolution goes further in English regions by ending “trickle-down power”.

She said: “Now is the time to be bold and allow the English regions to enjoy what the German Bundesländer and American states take for granted – the freedom a federalised system gives them to intervene locally in order to make life better.

“To take us towards a new era of power in the regions, the people of the North East need system change, immediate interventions to tackle the cost of living and long-term changes that give them hope of a better future.” 

John McCabe, chief executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce, echoed the call for greater regionalised influence in future policy-making, urging Mr Burnham to deliver on promises to move part of the Prime Minister’s office responsibilities to the North of England. 

He said: “We welcome your ambition to establish a ‘No 10 of the North’ and hope it becomes a genuine gateway into Government for businesses, communities and leaders from every part of the North, building on the success of Darlington Economic Campus.

“The North East stands ready to play a full part in that ambition.”

Mirte Boot, interim head of think tank IPPR North, said: “Andy Burnham knows very well the status quo isn’t working for our communities. 

“His calls for transformative change by targeting the cost of living, empowering people in every postcode and remodelling the economic system are desperately needed.

“In announcing his plans to end rough sleeping, he has signalled he is willing to work at rapid pace to support those in need.

“We must now see that same pace in his work to rebalance the power in this country.”

Bianca Robinson, chief executive of Middlesbrough-headquartered national homelessness charity CEO Sleepout, added: “It's about time we heard this from a Prime Minister.

“For years, homelessness in the UK has been a stain on our national conscience.

“But if the Prime Minister is serious about ending rough sleeping, then power, funding and decision-making must be placed in the hands of local leaders.”

Calling for support to boost the cultural sector - and for Mr Burnham to visit County Durham - Julia Handleman-Smith, programme director at North East-based cultural partnership project Into the Light, said: “County Durham was once the beating heart of the nation. 

“Northern industriousness wasn’t only forged in our great cities, but in the mines beneath the landscapes of County Durham. 

“That spirit of hard work, resilience and innovation hasn’t disappeared; it has evolved.

“We know culture isn’t a luxury; it’s the fuel for regeneration.

“Prime Minister, come to County Durham and see what’s happening.

“If you’re serious about rebalancing opportunity across the country, meet the artists and communities that are driving regeneration.”

Want your business, product or service to be seen regionally and nationally? Bdaily helps you get your story in front of the right audience, every day. Find out how Bdaily can help →

Join more than 55,000 subscribers by signing up to our daily bulletin each morning here.