𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Andy Burnham’s “top secret” plan for an early general election has been exposed following his first Budget. Conservative MP Esther McVey said she has been told by a Labour MP that the party is racking up “election campaign agents” in apparent anticipation of going to the polls.

“I was chatting to lots of [Labour MPs], all of them wanting to get whatever was on their chest off their chest,” she told the Daily Expresso podcast. “Some of them said it had all the feelings of an early election.” She added: “One of them, and I will not name them, told me, top secret, that Labour has got 79 election campaign agents. Well, you don’t recruit 79 campaign agents if you’re not thinking of going to an election.”

Mr Burnham has repeatedly ruled out holding a snap election, but speculation has mounted since he replaced Sir Keir Starmer in Number 10. Commentators suggest he may be motivated by the prospect of a fresh mandate for leadership, rather than adhering to the promises made by Sir Keir in 2024.

The Prime Minister’s critics linked this lack of wiggle room to the absence of major announcements in Wednesday’s Budget, spurring leader of the opposition Kemi Badenoch to ask: “Is that it?”

Mr Burnham has categorically denied he is planning to call another election within the next year. Speaking after the fiscal statement, he said: “I don’t know how many times I’ve done this now, but yes, I can rule out calling a general election in the next 12 months.”

He added: “I have said repeatedly since coming into this job, I’m not thinking about myself. I’m not thinking about my own party and its prospects. I am thinking about people, and I’m thinking about what I can do to help them to have that care for people, which I spoke about on my first day in Downing Street.”

The Prime Minister insisted he was “leading from the front” and “putting Britain on a different path”. He said: “We’ve got a 10-year plan to come, and that will inform the spending review next year. These are my priorities, not looking at our own internal party political advantage.”

Nigel Farage, speaking at a press conference in Westminster, accused Mr Burnham of creating “a retail Budget aimed at an early general election”, however. The Reform UK leader added: “It doesn’t overall do very much, but it attempts to please a very large group of people.”

A Conservative Party spokesman also appeared to suggest they thought an election could be imminent. Referring to measures unveiled in the Budget, they said: “When you look at the fact that the fuel duty has been extended to July, that the VAT cut on bills has been extended to July, one might ask what’s happening in June.”