Andy Burnham uses first Commons appearance to set out economic and constitutional agenda

Andy Burnham made his first appearance in the House of Commons as UK prime minister on Tuesday, using the session to outline priorities for growth, living standards and devolution. He also said Britain needed to confront past policy choices as he sought to frame his government’s direction.

In his speech, Burnham pointed to Brexit and the Thatcher era as examples of decisions that, in his view, helped produce years of weak growth. He said he wanted to build a more hopeful political mood and argued that the country should aim to make the coming decade better than the last.

He also signalled possible changes on several policy fronts. Burnham indicated he was open to considering public ownership of the water industry, said electoral reform could be revisited in a future Labour manifesto and suggested defence spending could rise to 3% of gross domestic product by 2030.

On energy and climate policy, Burnham said he would attend the Cop31 summit in Turkey and continue backing green power, while remaining pragmatic about supply. His first Commons outing came more than six weeks after he entered Downing Street, with wars in Europe and the Middle East forming the wider backdrop to his remarks.