Andy Burnham, in his early days as Prime Minister, has scrapped a Labour pledge to end the freeze on income tax thresholds, in what critics are calling the latest in a series of policy reversals since he took office. The move is politically significant as it means more workers will continue to be dragged into higher tax bands through fiscal drag, even as the government commits fresh borrowing to fund a flagship transport pledge, raising questions about the coherence and cost of the new administration's early spending decisions.

At the same time, Burnham has pressed ahead with a plan to cap bus fares at £2, funded through £450 million of additional government borrowing. Opponents have seized on the contrast between abandoning the tax threshold commitment and taking on new debt for the fares policy, framing it as evidence of an uncosted and inconsistent approach in the government's first days, with further criticism reportedly emerging from within Labour's own ranks.