Andy Burnham sets out his plans for Government in first Commons outing as prime minister

Britain needs to be “blunt” about what has gone wrong in recent decades, and must spread power to people and places across the country to kickstart economic growth, Andy Burnham said, as he addressed the House of Commons for the first time since becoming prime minister.

He hit out at the deindustrialisation and privatisation of the 1980s, and the impact of austerity and Brexit on regions of the UK outside of the South East and London.

“Unless we are blunt about what went wrong, we won’t turn things around. Far from taking back control, the combination of these policies took control out of the hands of communities up and down Britain,” the Makerfield MP said.

Taking back public control over services and utilities will be at the centre of the Government’s efforts to create economic growth, the prime minister said.

He hit out at the “failed economic model” which had led to high streets across the country being left desolate, and described Britain’s water industry as “a leaking monument to that approach, a country run in the private rather than public interest”.

Mr Burnham added: “The Government I lead will be relentless, relentless in giving people and places what they were promised 10 years ago: ownership and control.

“And from that control over their destiny comes change and growth.”

A 10-year plan for Britain, laid out later this year, will make the case for “stronger public control over these essentials, making them work for people and places again”, Mr Burnham said.

Leading Greater Manchester as its mayor has “given me a clear theory of growth”, he claimed, adding: “I will apply it to all parts of the UK learning from what has been achieved in Greater Manchester.”

An early sign of this approach was the announcement he had asked No 10 North to start working with Cornwall Council on a devolution deal “with or without an elected mayor” – and extended the offer to other parts of the country.

“For a long time, the country did not have ambitions for its regions outside of London – it even talked of the managed decline of Liverpool,” Mr Burnham said.

“It took the devolution of power out of this place to allow our big city regions the ability to set new ambitions for themselves.

“Now, I want every single place across our regions and nations to be able to do the same, creating the conditions for good growth in every postcode.”

The prime minister announced he will attend the Cop 31 climate summit in Turkey in November, as he pledged to “meet the climate challenge”.

Mr Burnham paid tribute to his predecessor Sir Keir Starmer, who announced he would stand down as an MP.

Sir Keir has “given this country a lifetime of public service, particularly for those fighting for justice”, Mr Burnham said, paying tribute to his work on a Hillsborough Law and supporting Ukraine.

Mr Burnham began to address some of the major challenges his Government faces as Parliament returns for the autumn, including overcrowding in the prisons estate.

As he set out changes to the prisons early release scheme, Mr Burnham said “problem-solving over point-scoring” will “characterise” his time as prime minister.