Andy Burnham is due to announce a series of measures aimed at easing pressures on people struggling with the cost of living in the coming days, Downing Street said. The prime minister’s programme is intended to “give people some room to breathe”, No 10 said, as he begins a summer tour of the UK focused on both cost-of-living support and improvements to high streets. Cost of living measuresDowning Street said Burnham will roll out “pro-consumer cost of living measures” designed to tackle everyday problems such as hidden pricing and what the government describes as consumers being ripped off. A spokesman said Burnham believes people have not been helped by years of messaging that suggests day-to-day difficulties must be accepted as part of life. He said the plans will seek to provide practical relief as the government prepares its wider agenda. High streets and regional tourBurnham is also set to concentrate on “improving high streets” while meeting people across the UK’s nations and regions. No 10 said he has been in “listening mode” during the tour to help inform a “10-year plan to bring back hope” and make Britain “better off”. Although Burnham has been on holiday this week, the spokesman said he will use the tour to gather views on local concerns and priorities. Pressure over early release schemeAs the government prepares for the cost-of-living announcement, Burnham is likely to face continued scrutiny over a prison early release scheme in England and Wales, which is set to begin in October. Criticism has focused on the fact that two of the killers of PC Andrew Harper are due to be eligible for release under the scheme from next year. Burnham ordered a review soon after taking office that narrowed the range of people who would qualify, but those convicted of manslaughter will still be eligible, including in the Harper case. PC Harper’s family, former senior police officers and opposition politicians have called for the individuals to be denied early release. Burnham has said he cannot go further without risking prison capacity, a position No 10 said remained unchanged on Saturday night despite reports that he could revisit the decision. The scheme has been in place for England and Wales since late 2023 under the previous Conservative government. However, the Ministry of Justice has warned that the prison population could exceed capacity as soon as November. No 10 said recent figures for England and Wales, recorded on 23 August, showed the prison population at 86,495—more than 97% of usable capacity. Opposition reactionThe Conservatives said the government’s approach to cost of living was harming high streets, arguing that “tax hikes and red tape are hammering our high streets”. Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said Labour was planning to release “dangerous criminals” onto streets while also driving up prices for the public through its economic policies. Liberal Democrat Treasury spokeswoman Daisy Cooper said businesses on high streets needed more than what she described as a “vanity tour”, and argued that the prime minister should adopt Lib Dem proposals. These include reversing what she described as a jobs tax, delivering an emergency VAT cut for hospitality, replacing business rates and tackling “ghost landlords”. Reform UK economic spokesman Robert Jenrick said that if Burnham wants to help with the cost of living, he should scrap green levies and taxes on energy bills and rule out tax rises at the Budget. Join the discussion? 10 August 2026
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