EXCLUSIVE: Prime Minister Andy Burnham reflects on his first 100 days in office – and pledges more change that people ‘can see in their lives and feel in their communities’
A hundred days ago I stood in Downing Street and promised to do things differently.
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I promised to put decisions back into the hands of the people they affect, to tackle the problems Westminster had got too comfortable ignoring, and to make this the moment when Britain starts believing in itself again.
There were plenty of people who told me all of this would be impossible. But we’re just a few months in, and together we’re proving them wrong.
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Already, we’ve started handing power back to our towns, cities and communities on a scale not seen in decades.
Mayors will be given more control over transport, skills and housing, a share of the income tax raised in their area, and I want areas without mayors to get new powers and funding so that no postcode is left behind. And with the creation of No10 North, we’re putting the full force of government behind those people and places too.
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We’ve started confronting the problems that government after government has ducked. This includes building a National Care Service that treats people with the respect they deserve and bringing the country together to get people sleeping rough off the streets once and for all.
And while we’ve had one eye on those big issues, we’ve kept the other on those everyday things that make life harder than it needs to be.
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We’ve banned subscription traps, ended rip-off discounts and unfair parking charges, cut costs for school uniforms, capped bus fares and scrapped VAT on electricity bills.
I’m not pretending the job’s done. Not even close. I know how much pressure families across the country are still under.
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And I know that we’ll need to go further to earn people’s hope, including in the Budget. Not with words – people have had plenty of them – but with more of that change people can see in their lives and feel in their communities.
This is just the beginning. So stick with us. Because we’ve got big plans to transform our country – and I won’t stop until people can look to the future with hope again.