Will Burnham have to put up taxes?

Will Burnham have to put up taxes?

Andy Burnham is headed for Downing Street and could be Prime Minister in just three weeks. But can he really deliver his bold vision without putting up taxes? In this episode of Talking Politics, Robert is joined by Harry Horton, fresh from Burnham's major speech in Manchester, to unpack his economic blueprint. From the promise to build more council homes to bringing essential services like energy and water back under public control, they explore Burnham's big ideas, his plans for a "Number 10 of the North", and ask: how will he pay for it? In the second half of the episode, Robert speaks to Carl Dinnen about another looming financial headache: Keir Starmer's Defence Investment Plan has exposed a £4.7 billion funding gap. If Burnham takes the keys to Number 10, how can he plug that hole while delivering his own ambitious programme for change?

Who would be Burnham's chancellor?

Andy Burnham is on track to become Britain’s next prime minister, but we don’t yet know who he’ll pick as chancellor. Could it be Ed Miliband, or would he spook the markets? Perhaps Yvette Cooper is a safe pair of hands, or could Wes Streeting get the keys to Number 11 despite his “brazen disloyalty” to his last boss? On this week’s Talking Politics, Tom and Robert ask what a Burnham government could look like, and break down what his major policy changes could be. Plus, Peston gives his advice to the next PM on welfare, defence and the pension triple lock. Contains mild language.

Starmer resigns but what could go wrong for Burnham?

Tom Bradby and Robert Peston are in Downing Street to discuss Keir Starmer's resignation, after he set a timetable for his departure as PM. Newly elected MP Andy Burnham has confirmed he will run to replace him as Labour leader. Tom and Robert break down what went so wrong for Starmer, less than two years after his landslide election win, and what obstacles could be in Burnham's way.

'Burnham will be our next PM' - so what happens now?

Andy Burnham’s big Makerfield by-election victory is set to reshape British politics as we know it. So what happens next? In this special Talking Politics episode, Tom Bradby and Robert Peston are joined by Election Analyst Professor Jane Green from Nuffield College, University of Oxford, to answer the key questions. Is Britain now waking up to a new prime minister? What does the Labour vote share in Makerfield tell us about potential voting in a General Election? Would Andy Burnham definitely perform better than Sir Keir Starmer? Could he call a General Election once he's prime minister? What does it mean for Reform’s chances at a national level? Are the Conservatives still in the picture? And is electoral reform now inevitable?

Starmer's post-Makerfield plan for Burnham and survival

Ahead of one of history’s most consequential by-elections this week, Keir Starmer has revealed how he plans to persuade Andy Burnham not to launch a leadership challenge. In this week’s Talking Politics, Robert joins Tom from Evian in France where Starmer is meeting world leaders at the G7 summit - in what could be his last foreign trip as PM. As voters in Makerfield prepare to head to the polls on Thursday, Robert explains why Starmer’s strategy to stay in Number 10 if Burnham wins the by-election is “almost emotional blackmail”. And: find out what Robert thinks the PM and Millwall Football Club have in common… Full list of candidates standing in the Makerfield by-election: Jake Austin, Liberal Democrats Count Binface, Count Binface Party Andy Burnham, Labour Party Dan Clarke, Libertarian Party John Alfred Dyer, Independent Ed Gemmell, Climate Party Paul Richard Gould, Independent Alan 'Howlin' Laud Hope, The Official Monster Raving Loony Party Robert Kenyon, Reform UK Robert Pownall, Independent Rebecca Shepherd, Restore Britain Sarah Wakefield, Green Party Peter Ward, Rejoin EU