The five key takeaways from Andy Burnham’s virtual ‘ask me anything’

Andy Burnham took questions from the masses during an ‘ask me anything’ session on Reddit on Friday afternoon.

The Prime Minister-designate answered questions on topics ranging from devolution to “Number 10 in the North”, from the pension triple lock to HS2 and infrastructure, and even his own taste in music.

He is just a few weeks away from being expected to take over the prime ministership from Sir Keir Starmer, as the only Labor MP in the race.

The former mayor of Greater Manchester has steered clear of some tough questions on big issues such as foreign policy and digital privacy, but tackled others head on.

Read our five key takeaways below:

Labor will stick to commitment on pensions triple lock

Dozens of questions flooded in from commentators asking Mr Burnham to clarify his position on the pensions triple lock.

He replied: “I appreciate that there has been a lot of debate on this issue, but it is important that the commitment in the manifesto survives.”

Labor has previously pledged to keep the triple lock throughout the party’s time in Parliament. Mr Burnham’s response suggests this is unlikely to change.

Controversial policy introduced in 2011 means state pension increases year on year highest of three measures. These:

The triple lock was introduced to ensure that the state pension was not overwhelmed by rising prices or the average spending power of employees. But it has been criticized for potentially lacking long-term sustainability and costing the government more money each year. The cost of pension payments to the government in 2023/24 is an estimated £124.3bn.

Ready to negotiate with countries on refugee return agreements

When asked, Mr Burnham gave a simple answer: “Are you prepared to negotiate repatriation agreements with countries such as Afghanistan for refugees whose asylum claims have been rejected? Particularly those who have committed serious and violent crimes?”.

The answer: “Yes”.

He will support the Labor Party, which supports electoral reform.

Mr Burnham answered many questions about electoral reform and declared himself a “strong supporter” of change.

But he didn’t detail exactly what kind of change his vision would require.

“I am a strong supporter of electoral reform because I believe it will enable a shift to more collaborative politics and one geared toward problem-solving rather than point-scoring,” he wrote.

“In the next manifesto I will try to persuade my own Party of the need for a manifesto commitment.”

He will not go to early elections

Mr Burnham said he would not call a general election if he became prime minister.

One user asked the Makerfield MP: “I guess you’re going to call an election? If not, why not?”

Mr Burnham replied: “No. As I said in my speech on Monday, I will be working on the 2024 manifesto.”

The key for Burnham is delegation

It is difficult to see Mr Burnham, the ‘King in the North’, as a devolution candidate and likely soon-to-be prime minister.

He had already laid out his plans to enter the North’s 10th in a stirring speech in Manchester on Monday, but today he answered questions about whether everyone will get a fair slice of the devolution pie.

“As I said in my speech on Monday, I want to free London with even greater powers so it can move to the next level and retain its status as the world’s greatest capital,” he wrote.

“This could include powers over education, skills and housing, as well as greater financial devolution. Downing Street North will be at the service of London and the South East, helping London and the South East take powers in Whitehall, just as it has helped the North.”

Additionally, in the face of criticism of his economic policies, Mr Burnham once again turned to devolution as the key to growth, replying: “I’m not sure which economists you mean because two very prominent economists, Lord Jim O’Neil and Andy Haldane, have said that a devolution drive that brings power to every part of the country could be a game-changer when it comes to Britain’s growth levels.

“I’ve been running the fastest growing urban region in the country for the last 10 years, so I like to think I know something about it!”