Burnham caps bus fares at £2, draws comparison to 1980s London policy
6 reported
According to a Guardian column by Jonathan Freedland, new Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced on Wednesday that single bus fares across England would be capped at £2 starting in January. The column compares this move to the 1981 Fares Fair scheme under Ken Livingstone’s Greater London Council, which reduced short-hop fares to 10p and child tickets to 5p before being declared illegal. The column reports that Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticized the policy as “small answers to big problems” and “mayor of Manchester ideas,” while Burnham’s No 10 North plan aims to decentralize governance. The column also cites a new paper from Harvard Kennedy School and King’s College London, authored by Ed Balls and others, arguing that Britain’s productivity problem stems from regional divides. The column notes that Burnham faces financial constraints from a 2024 manifesto but views devolution as key to economic growth.
What’s reported
Andy Burnham announced on Wednesday that single bus fares across England would be capped at £2 starting in January.
The column compares this to the 1981 Fares Fair scheme under Ken Livingstone’s Greater London Council, which reduced short-hop fares to 10p and child tickets to 5p before being declared illegal.
Kemi Badenoch criticized the policy as “small answers to big problems” and “mayor of Manchester ideas.”
Burnham’s No 10 North plan aims to decentralize governance, with the PM describing the opening of the new site in Manchester as “the best day of my life.”
A new paper from Harvard Kennedy School and King’s College London, authored by Ed Balls and others, argues that Britain’s productivity problem is linked to regional divides.
The column states Burnham is hemmed in by a 2024 manifesto that blocks obvious routes to raising cash.
Key figures
Andy Burnham, Prime Minister
Kemi Badenoch, Conservative leader
Ken Livingstone, former leader of Greater London Council
Ed Balls, author of Harvard-Kings paper
Jonathan Freedland, Guardian columnist
Sources: The Guardian
