𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Andy Burnham has big plans for pubs if he becomes Prime Minister. The new MP for Makerfield, who was been sworn in on Monday, has confirmed plans to cut employers’ National Insurance contributions and reduce business rates for pubs.

Burnham’s plans for a fresh policy will affect all pubs across England. He has suggested lowering business rates for pubs, given the risk of thousands of establishments being forced to shut due to the Labour Party Government’s rates.

He said: “I have said that I thought the weight of the burden on employers’ national insurance wasn’t the right decision. However, it was the decision.

He added: “There is more that needs to be done to listen to the voice of small business, and as I’ve gone around this constituency, I’m hearing it a lot.

“People just feel they are at the kind of limits of what they can do.”

His idea would see pubs, clubs and music venues benefit from a 20% reduction next year, reports BirminghamLive.

Meanwhile, smaller, independent hospitality, leisure and retail firms would see the threshold for paying business rates lifted for the first time since 2017, removing many from the tax’s reach entirely.

Burnham said: “I am willing to be honest about where we have fallen short and say that my party has got this wrong in government.

He added: “They have undervalued the contribution these businesses make to our livelihoods and our communities.

“Our high streets matter to me because they matter to the people who live here. I want to make sure that these family-owned businesses, as the heart and soul of this country, are protected and given the chance to thrive.”

Burnham has tried to become Labour leader before – twice running, twice missing out. But with the resignation of Sir Keir Starmer today, Labour MPs have begun to rally around the new MP.