Andy Burnham has marked his first 100 days as Prime Minister with what columnist Esther McVey describes as a shameless Brexit betrayal. Writing in the Daily Express, McVey says Burnham has floated the idea of once again allowing free movement of people from the EU to the UK, which she calls probably the single biggest factor in why the UK voted to leave the EU in the first place.
Burnham accused of being out of touch
McVey argues that if Burnham thinks the solution to public concern about immigration is to let anyone from across the EU come to the UK with impunity, whether wanted or not, then he is more out of touch with public opinion than he would like to think.
She also criticises the government's defence approach, questioning the purpose of Wes Streeting telling the public that the nation must be ready for war in 1,000 days. McVey suggests this could be a media stunt to reassure the public that nothing would happen for three years, noting that Burnham has kicked the defence spending review down the road for another year.
Government 'Be Ready' campaign criticised
Instead of building up the nation's military capacity, McVey says the government has issued a national 'Be Ready' campaign to get people stockpiling tinned goods and water. She claims the Prime Minister would sooner spend taxpayers' money on benefits than defence of the nation.
In the same column, McVey reports on a visit with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch to Cheshire Police HQ to meet officers. Badenoch said her priority as PM would be to recruit another 10,000 police officers, giving them the equipment they need and cutting the paperwork that keeps them off the streets. She also pledged to build 50,000 prison places so offenders are not out on the streets because there is nowhere to lock them up.
McVey also touches on Tuesday night television, saying Nigella Lawson has added sauce to the Great British Bake Off, turning it into what she calls TV's sexiest food show.
