Unions respond to Burnham’s first conference speech as Labour leader & PM

Trade unions across different sectors responded to Andy Burnham’s first conference speech as Labour leader and Prime Minister, praising its hopeful message, whilst looking forward to seeing concrete evidence of the radical change promised in Liverpool. 

UNISON general secretary Andrea Egan said:

Reform of social care is a national emergency, and the prime minister was right to put it at the heart of his speech. A national care service will make a huge difference in getting the country back on its feet.

Fixing the system starts with sorting out the pay and conditions of the people he praised for holding social care together. An important first step is reversing plans to make migrant care workers wait 15 years to qualify to settle in the UK, instead of the current five.

If the prime minister is to build a fairer and more equal country that works for more people, he must properly fund public services and the people who deliver them after years of Tory neglect.

Repealing the public ownership ban on water is a positive move, but the prime minister needs to go further and bring water back into full public ownership.

It will be good to hear more about how he plans to tip the balance back in favour of ordinary people and make those with the deepest pockets pay their fair share.

It’s time to look seriously at things such as a wealth tax and raising the surcharge on banking profits, instead of people’s pensions.

Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said:

Andy Burnham is correct to say the country took a wrong turn in the 1980s. He is right to say the country needs a new economy and politics. He is also right to say things aren’t working as they should for working people.

If the hope and optimism that he talked about today is to become a reality then the Prime Minister will need to tackle the vested interests of those at the top of society who have enriched themselves at the expense of the majority in the country.

The Prime Minister’s call for a comprehensive education system, with parity between the academic and the technical, is welcome. But to deliver it will necessitate a new assessment and accountability system. It will require an end to the ideology that pits schools in competition against each other. It demands an end to the lack of democratic oversight of academies, and an end to the profiteering and excessive CEO pay. Above all else, schools need a cash injection to end 16 years of real terms cuts that has left 74 per cent of schools worse off in real terms than in 2010.

Taxing the big tech giants and reform of the tax system should be part of the solution to funding education and public services.

The NEU will support the Prime Minister in his endeavours where he delivers for education and working people, but we will continue to press this government where they fail to deliver.

People need to see change. They need to feel change. Parents need to know that not only will their lives improve but the lives of their children will be better.

TSSA praised Burnham’s speech for pointing the way to a “country and an economy which is run in the name of people and not profit”. General secretary Maryam Eslamdoust said:

The Prime Minister is showing that he gets it, that we need a country and an economy which is run in the name of people and not profit. We cannot continue down the path we have been on.

Working people and families have been paying for the excesses of a failed economic model since the banks crashed in 2008. They deserve a break, and an economy reset to serve their interests.

Capping bus fares at £2 and taking VAT off electricity bills are steps in the right direction. So is the commitment to put more of life’s essentials under public control. We want to see what that means in practice for energy and water, alongside the government’s plans to give councils a stronger role in building secure, affordable homes.

Since 2010 the foundations of our economy and public services have been eroded. Growth will only last if those foundations are rebuilt – with reliable transport, affordable homes and utilities, strong public services and decent work.

That means jobs, jobs, jobs — good, secure, unionised jobs with proper pay and prospects. Young people and graduates should not be pushed into low-pay, insecure work or left to make do in the gig economy.

Our union looks forward to working with Andy Burnham to bring our railways fully into public hands and deliver for our members as Great British Railways takes shape. That means protecting jobs, pensions, pay, travel facilities, terms and conditions, and giving workers a real say in the transition. For GBR to succeed we must deliver a just transition to a transport system and a country that works for everyone.

RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey welcomed Burnham’s admission that “this country has made the wrong choices over 40 years of neoliberalism” and added: “A key part of [that] was bringing outsourcing into our public services.”

On X, Dave Ward, General Secretary of the CWU union, said:

This was the most important speech from a Labour Prime Minister in a generation. Burnham’s Labour is unambiguously on the side of the working class and will rebalance power back towards communities, people and workers.

However, Unite the Union general secretary Sharon Graham warned the Prime Minister that scrapping the pensions triple lock would be “morally wrong”. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme ahead of his speech, Graham said axing the triple lock risked repeating the unpopular removal of the Winter Fuel Allowance under previous prime minister Sir Keir Starmer.

Instead of going to try and pick the pocket of pensioners, we need to move over to the other side of the equation and think about things like wealth taxes way before we try to stop something like the triple lock.

Going to a group of people who are getting around £12,500 a year in order to pay for it [social care], to take away their security, is wrong – I think its morally wrong,” she added, highlighting how current pensions are the lowest of the G7 countries.

Rachel Harrison, GMB National Secretary, said:

The Prime Minister’s speech was full of hope and addressed many issues GMB members face every day. From an actual plan for the water industry, to the National Care Service, support for young people and reduced energy bills for both customers and industry – it was packed announcements we can all get behind. The Government must now roll up its sleeves and get on with delivering.

Musicians’ Union general secretary Naomi Pohl said:

I thought his speech was inspirational. Not a dry eye among our delegation. He has bold plans for the country and it felt something we could all get behind. We needed the hopeful message and a sense of more radical change, especially around the care system and our young people.”

She went on to talk specifically about his comments on AI and to call for greater protections for creative workers. She said: “I hope his plans for the AI sector will include a plan to ensure fair remuneration for creators and a plan to protect the creative industries as a whole. There isn’t a binary choice for him to make between the AI and creative sectors – licensing can work for everyone, but it must involve fair pay for creators and performers.

Matt Wrack, general secretary of the teachers’ union NASUWT also praised the speech, but added that the PMs sentiments now needed to be backed up with action. He said:

Andy Burnham has delivered a powerful speech that will resonate with teachers and families who have seen the failings in our political system. We welcome his acknowledgement of the attacks on youth services and the hollowing out of public provision through privatisation which has led to shameful inequality in our country.

The Prime Minister is right to highlight the need to invest in children’s services and improve access to mental health support. Teachers know that without proper investment and early intervention too many young people are often left without the help they need.

Teachers will welcome these commitments but they need to be backed up with action. The test now for the Labour Government, the test upon which they will be judged by the British public, is how quickly they deliver real and meaningful change.

Paul Fleming, Equity general secretary, welcomed a focus on cost of living and working class ambition and said the creative industries must “sit at the heart of growth in every postcode”:

Equity members will welcome the Prime Minister’s announcements on tackling the cost of living. The essentials impact everyone – water, energy, housing and healthcare, and the precarious workforce in the creative industries are often at the sharp end of the rising cost of these bread-and-butter bills.

Burnham is right to talk up working class ambition and access. Nowhere is this more important than the creative industries which must sit at the heart of the growth in every postcode mission. We need to see a shift in funding levels and re-founding of the subsidy model to ensure working class artists can enter our industry and thrive within it.

Class barriers to the performing arts and entertainment industries are many, from elite and expensive education and training, the cost of auditions and casting platforms, to precarious short-term work, low pay and long hours. A child in Old Swan has as much right to access a creative career as an Old Etonian.

The Prime Minister said he will ‘put AI centre stage’ at the G20 next year. The central question is now how its risks are managed, and ensuring its benefits are for workers, not bosses.

We strongly urge the Prime Minister and his government to introduce personality rights to ensure performers’ work is not ripped off and provide protections for everyone over the use of their voice and likeness.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said:

We heard the Prime Minister speak passionately about showing boldness for our young people – about investing in them and rebuilding a comprehensive education.

This is welcome. It will be crucial this includes more investment in our schools – with the funding and support they need to deliver on plans to strengthen vocational and technical pathways, implement much-needed reforms to SEND, and effectively deliver their core mission of learning without having to worry about makinginv cuts to budgets for staff or resources.

As a union and profession we stand ready to work with the government on implementing this pledge, and to hold its feet to the fire to deliver on it.

Usdaw welcomed the PMs announcement of a National Care Service to be established in the next Parliament, free at the point of use and no charges on the basic state pension. Joanne Thomas – Usdaw general secretary said:

We welcome Andy’s first speech as Prime Minister to Labour conference, he showed a different style, a determination to change politics and hope born out of honesty. It was moving to hear Andy speak about his family and how his background has inspired him. He told us he would put Britain back on the right path and we look forward to the publication of ‘Our Plan for Britain’ later this year. To deliver good growth in every postcode and relief from the cost of living crisis for those struggling to make ends meet.

The announcement of a National Care Service is long overdue, with too many suffering the indignity of a broken care system for too long. Andy’s emotional explanation of what drives him to tackle this issue was clear for everyone to see and we very much want him to succeed. The funding of this is crucial and he is right to ensure that it will not come from borrowing, but we will want to see the detail of the state pension triple reform and ensure that income pensioners are protected.

Andy also rightly highlighted the issues young people face, which is an ever-growing issue. Usdaw is keen to see the Government deliver good jobs that are secure and well paid. That means the adult rate at 18, guaranteed hours contracts for all and permanent jobs with prospects. Solving youth unemployment is about the quality of jobs, not just quantity.

Other commitments to make real changes to help with the cost of living are also welcome. Sorting the housing crisis, making energy more affordable, bringing water back under public control and public transport more affordable are all key measures that will make a real difference to our members and put the country on a new course.

General Secretary of Community Union Roy Rickhuss said:

As a union representing thousands of adult social care workers, we’ve seen the state of our social care system, and it is dire. A generation of politicians have failed to tackle this issue and make the necessary bold changes to fix it.

The Prime Minister’s new approach for older people – which protects a State Pension that rises each year alongside a National Care Service – will finally be able to give everyone peace of mind in later life through the provision of free personal care. However, we can only pay for this bold and needed new direction for social care by reforming the State Pension triple lock.

The Prime Minister has laid out a plan that can make people hope again through a social care system that works for both vulnerable people and carers.

We look forward to working with the Government to deliver these reforms and build a National Care Service that will have a hugely positive effect on our members