Julia Hartley-Brewer has slammed Prime Minister Andy Burnham for his "hollow" and "flim-flam" policies during a heated exchange on TalkTV. Speaking with columnist David Wooding on Monday, the host questioned the new PM's tactics, saying: "Every single thing he says he's gonna do, he's just gonna do it differently, as if no one's thought of doing that before, but he hasn't actually announced how he's going to do anything at all."
Criticism over lack of substance
David Wooding agreed, noting: "No, he's given us a few sweeties, hasn't he, Julia? I mean, £2 bus fares, the 5% VAT removed from energy bills, which is 86p a week, it's nothing, is it?"
As David mentioned Andy's active social media presence, Julia interjected, calling the PM's video of himself and Chancellor John Healey eating scampi in a pub "the most bizarre video" she'd ever seen by a prime minister.
"All flim-flam"
Remarking that Andy Burnham has presented himself as more "likable" and "approachable" than his predecessor Keir Starmer, Julia mused: "At the end of the day, it's all flim-flam."
She fumed: "When he talks about dealing with the boats, again, 'We're going to try a different approach, and we're going to be relentless'. Doing what? What are you actually going to do? Social care. Doing what? 'Well, we're gonna speed up the review. We're gonna tackle this, we're gonna tackle welfare.' Doing what? We haven't actually got any substance to, as far as I can tell, any policies whatsoever yet."
Pressure on the PM
Since arriving at 10 Downing Street, the Labour leader has faced criticism over the early-release prison scheme and has been accused of avoiding and delegating immigration policy. In a fresh blow, he has also been criticised for taking a holiday after less than three weeks in charge.
Reform UK Chairman Lee Anderson MP responded: "Two weeks into the job and Andy Burnham has already had enough. After dropping a number of unfunded commitments and overseeing over 2000 illegal migrants breaking into our country, he's bunked off for a jolly abroad. This isn't a Prime Minister that's serious about leading."
