Andy Burnham is facing mounting pressure to explain how he will pay for a string of spending pledges, as it emerges he plans to tackle social care reform in his second week as prime minister. Having vowed not to leave office without fixing a crisis he says has been ignored for nearly three decades, Burnham follows a line of predecessors, including Boris Johnson, who promised similar reforms without delivering them, and his own earlier failed attempt as health secretary in 2009, when a proposed care levy was branded a "death tax" by the Conservatives.

The pressure has intensified after Burnham announced measures including cutting business rates for pubs and music venues, removing VAT from energy bills, and capping bus fares at £2, prompting Tory demands to know where the funding will come from. The Resolution Foundation estimates this week's pledges alone will cost over £2bn by 2029-30, shrinking fiscal headroom to as little as £8bn. Shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride accused Burnham of making "unfunded promises" that add to fears of tax rises in the next Budget, while a No 10 source insisted the prime minister has "the courage" to confront long-neglected problems.