Andy Burnham has promised to cut business rates for pubs by 20 per cent and suggested he could scrap one of Rachel Reeves’ key policies if he becomes prime minister.
The focus on policy comes after the mayor of Greater Manchester, who is running as Labour’s candidate in the Makerfield by-election, finally confirmed that, if he wins, he will seek to oust Sir Keir Starmer from Downing Street.
In a major split with Starmer-era policies, he said he was “sympathetic” to cutting employers’ National Insurance.
The tax was controversially raised by Ms Reeves in Labour’s first budget after its landslide election victory in 2024. At the time the party blamed the previous Tory government for the move, which it said was necessary because of the dire state of the public finances.
Mr Burnham also promised to reverse tax rises which have hit hospitality and small businesses since Labour came to power.
An ongoing revaluation of business rates, coupled with a removal of Covid-era relief, is expected to result in higher levies for many restaurants, shops and other small businesses.
Pubs and music venues were given a carve-out in January, following public outcry.
But Mr Burnham has pledged to go further and cut rates by 20 per cent for pubs. He also said he would lift the threshold at which other small businesses pay the rates, effectively abolishing them for the smallest.
He said: “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.
“I am willing to be honest about where we have fallen short – and say that my party has got this wrong in government. They have undervalued the contribution these businesses make to our livelihoods and our communities.”
To fund his plans, Mr Burnham announced plans to raise taxes on online tech giants and their British warehouses.
He also told BBC’s Newsnight that the decision to hike national insurance contributions for employers had been wrong.
“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 said. “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.”
Asked if he was open to reversing it, he said: “I’m sympathetic to that, because I’ve been on the record of saying that before, this thing I’m announcing today isn’t the be-all and end-all.”