𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Burnham, whose father is unaware that his son has become prime minister due to Alzheimer’s disease, promised to help “my dad and the millions like him” faced with the unfairness of the current system as he acknowledged tax hikes could be needed to pay for fundamental changes. He admitted that “difficult, difficult decisions” could be needed on tax but insisted fixing the current problems in social care in England could save the NHS billions of pounds a year. Mr Burnham said it was a “major dereliction of public duty” that successive governments had failed to address the crisis in social care.

The specific means of funding the changes have yet to be outlined, with estimates putting the figure required to do so at around £18 billion per year.

Stephen Millard, deputy director for macroeconomics at The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) believes there is clearly no means by which the Treasury could fund the changes within existing budgets, leaving tax rises or spending cuts as the main alternatives.

He told GB News: “The triple lock on pensions, that is very, very expensive, and will get more expensive as we age.”

According to estimates from the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the state pension triple lock costs between £12billion and £12.6billion each year.

But he acknowledged tax rises could also be necessary, although he insisted Labour’s manifesto commitments not to increase workers’ income tax, national insurance or VAT rates would remain in place.

In an indication tax hikes to pay for social care could be in Labour’s next election manifesto he said: “We will put them before the country at the right time, and we will hopefully proceed with people’s consent.”

Mr Burnham indicated he was prepared to gamble his political reputation on getting the changes through.

“This is huge for me,” he said.

“I know this will require me to put what political capital I have on the table and it could wear down that political capital in some ways.

“But I’m prepared to do it. I’m prepared to do it because this has gone on too long.

“The risks of failing to act are too great.”