On Monday morning, the nation watched as Keir Starmer stepped down as Prime Minister. Shortly afterwards, Andy Burnham was sworn in and addressed the nation outside Number 10. During his first speech as the 59th Prime Minister, he set out a 10-year plan for the country and detailed several pledges. These included cutting VAT on household electricity bills, ending long-term rough sleeping across the nation, and lowering bus fares.
Burnham's First Address and Pledges
In part of his speech, Burnham said: "Later this year I will bring forward a new plan for Britain, a ten year plan laying out a path from where we are now to where I believe we all want Britain to be, wherever we're coming from, whatever party we support." He added: "But I can do something to give people some breathing space now, some help with the cost of living. And I will set out some of those measures starting tomorrow, including how we pay for them."
Cabinet Reshuffle and Speculation
As the new Prime Minister, Burnham executed a sweeping Cabinet reshuffle, which saw John Healey appointed as Chancellor and Angela Rayner returning to government as the Secretary of State for Housing. There had been speculation over who would take the role of Chancellor, with many believing it would be between Ed Miliband and Shabana Mahmood.
Discussing the latest on Good Morning Britain, Kevin Maguire highlighted that there was 'war' between Shabana and Ed for the role as Chancellor. Meanwhile, Kwasi Kwarteng shared that he believes the new Prime Minister opted for John Healey to keep the peace within the party.
Susanna Reid Interrupts Discussion
However, Susanna Reid was less than impressed with the discussion and decided to end their chat. She commented: "Can I just point out, viewers, I don't think care about this. I just thought I'd bring the conversation to an end at that point." She continued: "I'm not sure, he said yesterday, didn't he, 'I want to end factionalism, and I want to end the briefing.' Already, just a few minutes into our discussion, we're talking about factionalism and briefings. Surely, the viewers need to know what is he going to do for them? We've already dismissed his first measure which is to take VAT off an electricity bill by saying it's unfunded."
While Kwasi emphasised that financial commitments require corresponding revenue sources, Reid acknowledged his point before attempting to redirect the discussion towards more pertinent matters. Good Morning Britain is available to watch on ITV weekdays from 6am.
