Up next in 10
Rachel Reeves is no longer chancellor and David Lammy has been axed as Deputy PM as Andy Burnham begins forming his Cabinet. All eyes will now be on who Mr Burnham could select for his Cabinet. Shabana Mahmood has been tipped to be the next Chancellor, although left-wing Labour MPs are said to be opposed to the prospect. Listen to the full show on the all-new LBC App: https://app.af.lbc.co.uk/btnc/thenewlbcapp #tomswarbrick #andyburnham #rachelreeves #cabinet #downingstreet #debate #uknews #ukpolitics #news #politics #chancellor #LBC #Labour LBC is the home of live debate around news and current affairs in the UK. Join in the conversation and listen at https://www.lbc.co.uk/ Sign up to LBC’s weekly newsletter here: https://l-bc.co/signup
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0:00
Good afternoon to this hour
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Many feel as though they're still in decline and they don't have the ability to turn things around
0:09
And that's why we will change politics. Without notes, without electing, this was the first signal that Andy Burnham as prime minister
0:18
was doing politics differently. And now this afternoon, we get the first sign of the team he is assembling
0:23
to start that process of change. A circuit breaker for Britain, he calls it
0:29
In a few moments, we'll take you to the garden of number 10 Downing Street, where Natasha Clarke, our political editor, has been speaking to the new Prime Minister
0:35
First, rather on the team he is assembling, let's look at the one he is disassembling
0:39
because in the last few moments we've had it confirmed, Rachel Reeves is out as Chancellor
0:44
Bethany Dawson is LBC's political correspondent, live for us on the street outside numbers 10 and 11
0:49
Bethany, how much of a surprise is that, to know that Rachel Reeves is leaving number 11
0:53
Afternoon. hi well we were expecting rachel reeves to leave her post as chancellor but there was a question as
1:02
to whether she would stay in the cabinet and the times are reporting that she was offered a big
1:07
job but she declined it and i have been told that that is indeed the case rachel reeves parting
1:14
speech that she posted on social media did indeed seem like quite a big farewell there was a point
1:21
which she said stability restored, investment delivered and reformed to our economy, underway
1:27
And she later in her statement said to every young woman and girl, let my time in office show
1:32
There should be no ceilings on your ambitions, your hopes or your dreams
1:36
Of course, she was the first female chancellor. There is yet no one coming down Downing Street to accept new jobs
1:44
But the reporting is that the front runners for Rachel Reeves's role is either current Home Secretary
1:50
Shabana Mahmood, or Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who said goodbye to civil servants in the Department for Energy this morning
1:58
We also have news about the now former, I guess we call him
2:02
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy gone too. David Lammy is gone and Peter Kyle is gone, who is Business Secretary
2:11
We also had quite an intense goodbye across the board. They were all very emotional
2:19
These are hard days. I know there is limited empathy for politicians who are losing their jobs, but these are big days
2:28
Steve Reid, the housing secretary, in his resignation letter, he is a key Starmer ally
2:34
He too has gone today, wrote in his letter on social media to Andy Burnham
2:39
I hope those who did not show loyalty to Keir Starmer will now show it to you
2:44
I'm proud I acted with integrity every step over the turbument last few months
2:51
Can't say that is dripping with love from the former housing secretary
2:56
So as much as the who is in or out, there's a question now about the what is in or out
3:01
With Andy Byrne promising a form of stability and saying he will stay within the confines of the 2024 Labour manifesto
3:08
does that mean that the economic model that he wants to build, the new economic model he wants
3:14
to build, stays within the parameters of the 2024 manifesto or not? I don't see how both can be true
3:21
He has said that he will be sticking to the manifesto and to Rachel Reeves fiscal rules So it is going to be some very creative wiggling from Andy Burnham One of the things he did tell LBC Andrew Marr is that business rates were not
3:35
something that was committed to being frozen within the 2024 election. He would consider
3:41
raising them on some businesses, including warehouses specifically, but that he then
3:47
wanted to be able to cut them for other high street businesses. So he is going to make a big
3:52
speech, some big promises on the economy, as reported by our political editor, Natasha
3:58
Clark. So we think within the next few days, we hope within the next few days, he's going
4:04
to start spelling out some of the finer details of his economic plan. And he may even have
4:09
a chancellor beside him. Maybe. At this stage, Bethany, it might be you called up to go and serve behind number
4:15
11. Go in, see if you can try your luck. Bethany Dawson, LBC's political correspondent
4:19
live for us on Downing Street. You can see her and the rest of the show
4:23
brought to you live on the LBC app, Global Player, or on YouTube as well
4:27
It's going to be a busy afternoon keeping an eye on that street as people walk up it to take their posts
4:33
Let's come on to the kind of things Keir Starmer we think is going to do
4:36
with his new team once they are assembled. Natasha Clarke is LBC's political editor
4:40
You've been outside Downing Street all morning, Natasha. You were invited in a little bit earlier
4:45
this afternoon. I gather you spent some time in the garden with the new Prime Minister. Yes, and I trust you mean Andy Burnham, not Keir Starmer
4:51
OK, good to know. It's really hard to keep track of which Prime Minister we're on now, Tom
4:55
But yes, Andy Burnham, just after he came back from the palace
4:59
gave that speech outside the lectern of Number 10 Downing Street, went in to make some very important calls with world leaders
5:06
including Donald Trump, and then took some of us journalists aside in the Downing Street garden this afternoon
5:12
where he gave us a few minutes of his time, said hello and answered a few questions
5:16
So giving us a little bit of a chance to put to him what is his priority going to be in government
5:21
And he essentially told us in the last few minutes that one of his priorities is going to be the cost of living
5:26
A package is expected as early as tomorrow. He said he's just finalising the details of that
5:31
He wouldn't get into whether that means a bus fares freeze, some help with energy bills, rent, etc
5:37
But we are told that he will be essentially dotting the I's and crossing the T's on something which he hopes, as he quotes, he says, will make an impact this year
5:46
So some immediate cost of living help. He didn't say exactly what it was going to be, but he says it will help with the direction of travel for what he wants to do in government
5:53
Now, I'm old enough to remember the last prime minister, Keir Starmer, also promising help on the cost of living
5:58
And to be honest, while it is welcome in certain aspects because people need that help, everything is getting more expensive
6:03
Frankly, it is tinkering around the edges. This is not the building of a new political or economic model
6:08
It might be the start of some help, but it ain't that. What more did you get from the new PM on the kind of really big changes that he feels might be necessary
6:16
So income tax thresholds, as he said to The Times overnight, we pressed him on that
6:20
And he essentially said that that is going to be something he's going to look at. Probably not right now. He's going to wait for the budget for that
6:26
But income tax threshold, he says, are at the forefront of his mind. He said it is going to be very difficult knowing the financial situation
6:33
And also some comments that he made about the fiscal rules, Tom. He said he was going to stick to them, but he was looking at essentially pushing them to be the most flexible they can be
6:43
Now, that obviously is not going to be good news for the markets, especially as we've just heard that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will be on the way out
6:50
That is going to cause some jitters I think until we get the new chancellor confirmed as we expect to within the hour Did he I mean he suggested in the Times didn he overnight that he heard on the doorstep in Makerfield
7:02
that one of the things that was really agitating people was the freezing, Labour promised to change it
7:08
but the freezing of those income tax thresholds, particularly at the lower end
7:12
So what do we read into that? We read into that that whoever the next Chancellor is going to be might increase the top rate of tax from 45p to 50p
7:19
in order to pay for a tax cut for people on lower wages
7:23
Potentially. Now, he said that it was essentially getting a little bit ahead of ourselves
7:27
to be asking him things about the 50 fee tax rate. The media. He said, I've barely got my feet under the table
7:33
And that's completely fair to say. He literally has just stepped in to number 10
7:38
But the fact that he's not ruling out an increase in the top rate of tax
7:42
Tom, as you know, the manifesto promise is pretty clear, right? No income tax, no VAT and no national insurance rises
7:49
We know that Rachel Reeves got into a little bit of trouble with businesses when she essentially, many people say, broke the spirit of the manifesto by that NI rise
7:58
Is Andy Burnham going to potentially try to tweak with the income tax threshold
8:02
He didn't rule it out. He also didn't rule it in either. Very interesting. I've been in side number 10 for when reshuffles happen, not of this significance
8:10
but when reshuffles are occurring, literally a whiteboard was wheeled into the Prime Minister's office
8:17
and on it lots of names of various different people in various different roles. And I've got to tell you
8:21
they have a habit of falling apart, reshuffles, because the people you think are going to take this job
8:26
or want that job suddenly decide that they want some caveats with it or they don't want it anymore
8:29
They have a bargaining position. Do you think we're going to see a bit of that and do you think that was there in Rachel Reeves' resignation
8:36
We don't want you to be the Chancellor anymore. Thank you, Rachel. We'd like you to do this job, Secretary of State for Buttons
8:41
and she says no. Was that a real offer? Yes, apparently people in the Treasury
8:45
within Rachel Reeves' team saying yes, she was offered a big job
8:49
but declined it. They say they were not telling us any more about what she was offered
8:55
Clearly it was not going to be as big as Chancellor of the Exchequer. So understandably Rachel Reeves
9:00
feeling that she can't continue to serve in an Andy Burnham government. But that does, of course
9:04
then free up another spot for potentially another Burnham ally to come swooping in
9:08
But yes, I think it was always unlikely that Rachel Rees... And to be fair, I was told last week that Rachel Rees
9:12
might be given a job in Andy Burnham's government as some sort of compromise. But clearly she doesn't want to take it
9:18
She is now going to return to the back benches. But yes, there is obviously one name that we know
9:23
has refused to move in a Keir Starmer reshuffle. His name, Ed Miliband. So will there be any trouble ahead
9:29
if he decides not to go into the role that Andy Burnham wants him to go into? Natasha Clark is LBC's political editor
9:34
Much more to come throughout the afternoon with who goes where and, crucially, why
9:38
Gordon McKee joins us, Labour MP for Glasgow South, who resigned from his role as a parliamentary private secretary
9:44
at the Department for Work and Pensions in May, calling for Keir Starman to step down. Thank you very much indeed for coming on the programme, Mr McKee
9:49
Are you filled with the sense of hope that change is coming under Prime Minister Burnham
9:53
Thank you for having me, Tom. Yeah, I am actually very optimistic. I thought Andy gave an excellent speech this afternoon
9:58
on Downing Street. He spoke about, I think he gave a sense of optimism
10:03
He spoke about the things that matter to me and to my constituents, whether that's the cost of living
10:07
where that's ultimately I think making the country work for normal working people up and down Britain
10:12
And I'm very hopeful about what's to come in the days, weeks and months ahead
10:16
Andy Burnham talked about a new political and new economic model Let start with the new economic model What in your mind does that look like What are the contours of that Well I think what Andy long spoken about
10:29
spoke about this afternoon and on Friday, is that the economy works for a small number of people in
10:34
the United Kingdom, particularly at the upper end of the income spectrum. But there are a lot of
10:39
people who have worked day in, day out for the last few years, worked harder and harder. And at
10:44
the end of the month, they found less money in their pocket than in years gone by. And so I think
10:48
creating an economy where ordinary working people are able to afford the nice things in life
10:54
where people feel that things are getting better off for them and for their children and for their grandchildren
10:58
is the key priority, I think, for this government. Andy spoke about setting out some measures
11:03
on the cost of living tomorrow. I look forward to seeing what those are. Because for the people that I represent
11:07
in the south side of Glasgow, it's the cost of living that is still the most important. Yes, but the challenge has been brought to
11:13
was first brought to Keir Starman, and I suspect will be brought to Andy Burnham as well. I remember reading Rishi Sunak's column in a paper not that long ago saying that one of the strategic errors of his time in Downing Street was to focus on the cost of living, the measures that could help people day to day with the funding of various things, rather than economic growth
11:31
That is the thing that the country is absolutely crying out for. And yes, it's very helpful to get some money off your energy bill or some help with the water bill, what have you
11:39
But the thing the country without question now needs is that economic growth. And there are some very difficult tradeoffs in that
11:44
I think that's a fair challenge, Tom, actually. And I don't think Andy would disagree with that. We've got to get the economy growing in Britain. That is the fundamental problem that everybody's facing and indeed the government's facing with its own budget because we haven't had enough growth in recent years. Andy said, I think, quite an encouraging perspective on how you get that growth, which is ultimately trying to get growth in different parts of the country, as well as, of course, in London. And with Andy Burnham, I guess it's not just rhetoric, right? This is what he achieved as Mayor of Greater Manchester
12:12
Whatever you think of him, the economy in Manchester has been enormously successful
12:17
He's managed to attract investment, bring about economic growth. And I want to see that for the whole country, and I hope that we will
12:23
Thank you so much for your time. Gordon McKee, Labour MP for Glasgow South, resigned back in the day in May
12:28
calling for Keir Starmer to step down. Keir Starmer has stepped down. If you've, I don't know, just flicked the radio on, just come our way
12:34
you might be surprised to hear that Keir Starmer is gone and Andy Burnham is now in as Prime Minister
12:38
and is appointing his cabinet or is due to appoint his cabinet this afternoon
12:42
We know those who have gone. Steve Reid is out as Housing Secretary. David Lammy is gone as Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary. Rachel Reeves is out as Chancellor. And I think if you've listened to me for any period of time over the course of the last two years, I thought Rachel Reeves would have gone back end of last year, to be honest, because almost every tactical and strategic error made by the Starmer administration can, I think, be traced back to number 11
13:08
That's not to say that Rachel Reeves did everything wrong. Far from it is perhaps an indication of just how powerful the Treasury is
13:15
that every mistake can be traced back to number 11. But there was not an economy that was going gangbusters
13:21
There didn't seem to be the effect on growth that Labour thought that they were going to have when they first came in
13:26
And Andy Burnham, I thought it was really interesting in his speech, absolutely without question pointing out categorically that he has a plan
13:34
because the big error of the Starmer administration, as Morgan McSweeney admitted, Starmer's chief of staff admitted the other day they didn't have a plan and it was so obvious
13:42
it was so obvious that Starmer's government didn't have a plan for growth when they came in
13:46
Andy Burnham says he does and we're starting to see the shape that that is taking with the
13:50
appointments this afternoon
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