New reporting shows Andy Burnham has dropped his push to end the freeze on income tax thresholds, but is instead borrowing £450 million to fund the flagship £2 bus fare cap across England from the start of next year. The shift is being cast by critics as a Labour U-turn, with commentators questioning how the wider package of "day two" spending pledges will be paid for and noting a lack of costings behind them.

The £2 cap builds on the fare limit already in place for buses outside London and forms part of a roughly £500 million giveaway unveiled as new prime ministerial policy announcements continue. The story is also entangled with wider Labour turbulence, including the first public dissent from a Starmer loyalist recently sacked from a senior role, and claims that Burnham's team is dominated by private school and Oxbridge alumni, though no further detail is given on the precise funding mechanism.