Andy Burnham announces major Brexit plan that could make weekly food shop cheaper amid cost of living fears
Andy Burnham has vowed to try to help working people and drive down the cost of living as it was unveiled there were plans to work on a new EU agreement following Brexit.
The cost of people's weekly shop could be driven right down as the Prime Minister has arranged to meet European leaders in the hope of seeking new deals and reaching a 'positive path' for the UK.
It comes after the cost of an average weekly shop hit around £119 per week, according to data from Confused.com amid the soaring cost of living.
Defending his push for closer ties with Brussels, the Prime Minister said a new deal he hopes to secure next week will 'get food prices down' and put more money in the pockets of British exporters.
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He is due to meet EU leaders on 20 November and lock in agreements that he says could raise GDP by 0.4 percent, including on food and farming, emissions trading and a youth mobility scheme.
According to reports, the UK and EU are planning to unveil a new agreement lifting post-Brexit checks from food and agriculture exports to drive down food prices and make the cost of a supermarket shop more affordable.
Burnham also said the UK will then 'explore options' for a different long-term relationship with the trading bloc.
Speaking at Welsh Labour conference on Saturday (14 November) the Prime Minister said: “We need to be willing to take difficult decisions to get the cost of living down.
“It’s why, in a few days’ time, I will head to the next UK-EU summit and I will be working hard as we move towards it to get to a new deal on food and farming between the UK and the EU.
“I want to remove some of the red tape that food exporters here face when they are seeking to send their product support abroad, but more than anything I’m trying to get prices down, food prices down, and if we get the right deal, that is what we will do, as well as reduce costs for businesses, and overall get more growth into the UK economy, up to 0.4 percent on GDP.”
The Prime Minister’s remarks in recent weeks have fuelled questions about the prospect of the UK rejoining the EU or adopting its freedom-of-movement rules, but he has insisted voters would ultimately be 'the boss' of any changes.
Also writing for the Mirror, Mr Burnham said the move means he is vowing to make people's lives 'better for those who feel forgotten'.
"Any deal I seek to agree in Brussels must first pass what I call the Makerfield test: will it make life better for people in the parts of Britain that have felt forgotten?," he wrote.
"On Friday, there is a chance of reaching a deal that helps ease the cost-of-living crisis. I am putting Britain back on a positive path and working to get our economy growing.
"This Friday I can take the biggest step yet down that path - and I am determined to take it."
James Holt
