New Prime Minister Andy Burnham faced the opposition bench for Prime Minister's Questions for the first time, with a radically different cabinet by his side.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch first congratulated the Prime Minister on his "stamina" following the three and a half hour long statement as Parliament came back from recess yesterday. He answered 125 questions from MPs across the house following his opening speech as Prime Minister.
The speech was somewhat overshadowed by the shocking news of Keir Starmer's resignation as an MP following his ousting as Prime Minister. His resignation has now been formalised, with a by-election triggered in his constituency of Holborn and St Pancras.
Tax and spending questions
It didn't take long for PMQs to devolve into a familiar rhythm. Badenoch first asked Burnham if there was a "single spending request" to which he answered "no" across his lengthy speech. In turn, he said he was committed to bringing down the welfare bill.
Mrs Badenoch replied: "He did not say no to a single spending request, and personally, I think it's delightful that he wants to make everyone happy, but a Prime Minister needs to be a leader, not a people-pleaser."
She added: "Yesterday the Prime Minister told the House that his summer of promises would be paid for by reprioritising within Government. So what exactly has he cut?"
Mr Burnham replied: "In terms of 'what has he cut?', tax is the simple answer to that question. Within days of office I indicated that we would remove VAT off electricity bills, that will help people with the cost of living and then days later with the support of the Chancellor we said that there would be a cut in business rates for pubs, social clubs, live music venues. So this Government (is) lowering the cost of living, lowering the cost of business."
Defence spending debate
However, Badenoch pressed Burnham on any potential plans to raise taxes. She said: "He needs to pay for all his new promises, and he has a choice: higher taxes, more borrowing or spending cuts. Yesterday, he said change begins with honesty. So, will he be honest and tell us? Is he preparing to raise taxes again? Yes or no?"
Responding, Mr Burnham said: "I've already indicated my first moves were to cut tax, but I'm not going to do what any prime minister has done and write the Budget here. That will be the matter for my Right Honourable friend (Chancellor John Healey). But can I also say to her that he and I took a deliberate decision to set an early date for the Budget so that we reduce the period for prolonged speculation of the kind that she is wanting us to indulge in today."
After a terse exchange on Badenoch's new shadow chancellor and the role he played in Liz Truss's disastrous mini-Budget, talk turned to defence. Kemi Badenoch pressed him to "cut welfare spending and invest that money in our defence", adding: "The honeymoon is over. Isn't it time for the Prime Minister to ditch the vibes and get serious about defending our nation?"
Mr Burnham replied: "The very reason I appointed this Chancellor (John Healey) to his position is because of his strong commitment to the defence of our country and to defence spending." John Healey is the former defence secretary under Sir Keir Starmer, who resigned in June over funding shortfalls for defence.
He added: "We will fully fund the defence investment plan and, at the spending review, we will set out a plan to meet our NATO commitment by 2035. There is no problem with our commitment to defence."
