Will the PM’s ‘rewiring of the state’ help you?

Andy Burnham has given his first speech as prime minister at the Labour party conference. So what did he say and what does it all mean for you?

Money Wellness have been at the Labour conference in Liverpool this week, where all sorts of crucial issues were on the agenda, from energy bills and housing costs to child poverty and financial resilience.

So it was good to see that the cost of living was a central theme of the PM’s speech.

But interestingly, there was also a big focus on greater public control of the essentials we all rely on and a pledge to “rewire” the country to “make it work for all people and places”.

Let’s take a look at what he said in more detail.

Cutting energy bills

The PM pointed out that British households are paying “some of the highest energy costs in Europe”.

However, he said he wants to see them more in line with other European countries within a decade.

This, he stated, means reforming a “broken energy market so it better serves the public interest”.

Mr Burnham confirmed that the government is already taking more control of electricity prices by expanding homegrown, renewables and nuclear energy.

And he said the energy secretary will look at how to break the link between “what we pay for power at home and the international gas market to get bills down”.

Overhauling the water system

Mr Burnham described water as “a symbol of what has gone wrong with Britain”, and “a service where the shareholders never lose and the public never win”.

So the ban on public ownership of water companies will be repealed.

That doesn’t mean any water companies are going to be nationalised right now, but it opens the door in this direction.

And mayors will be given more powers to hold water companies to account.

More council housing

Mr Burnham pledged to restore the public housing stock “to what it once was”.

As part of the government’s drive to increase the supply of council housing, local authorities will be given the power to take control of empty homes and turn them into public housing.

Meanwhile, private sector landlords who rent out the worst-quality homes will be given warnings to improve them.

If they refuse, the government will make it easier for councils to acquire these homes, and this could be set in law.

"We don't let people sell food which damages health, so why allow it with homes,” the PM said.

“From now on, we won't.”

Helping young people back into work

Almost a million young people aren’t in employment, education or training right now.

So Mr Burnham believes a “fundamental rethink of the welfare system” is needed, so young people have options other than relying on benefits.

The speech was light on details in this area, as a major review by former health secretary Alan Milburn is still to be published, which Mr Burnham pointed out.

But he described his approach to welfare as “a philosophy of social security, a country which invests in people success rather than abandoning them and paying for failure”.

“A country like that will be much more resilient to the shocks we will undoubtedly face in the rest of this century, and more able to meet its later obligations on defence,” he said.

Leasehold reforms

Andy Burnham has promised to introduce a bill outlining “long overdue” changes to the leasehold system before Christmas.

If you own a leasehold property, such as a flat or apartment, you don’t own the building or land it stands on outright.

Instead, these are usually owned by the freeholder, so leaseholders generally have to pay service charges to the landlord, freeholder or managing agent to cover the cost of maintaining, repairing and managing the building.

So people can end up paying lots of money on top of their day-to-day housing costs.

“The days of you being squeezed for every penny are coming to an end," Mr Burnham said.

A new social care system

Mr Burnham has proposed the creation of a National Care Service, where social care would be free at the point of use, with care charges not coming from basic state pensions.

He said this would give people “peace of mind over care needs in later life” and protect their homes and savings.

Pensions triple lock to be reformed from 2030

The pensions triple lock guarantees that the state pension increases each April either at the rate of inflation, average earnings, or 2.5% - depending on whatever is highest.

And this will stay in place until the end of this parliament.

But from 2030, the state pension will continue to rise every year at least by prices or 2.5%.

Mr Burnham stressed that it will “hold its value relative to earnings over time" so that pensioners "will always share in the rising prosperity of the nation".

He added that this would "generate significant savings" which will be used to support the government’s new social care plans.

Breathing space

While Mr Burnham was keen to outline big, ambitious plans, he acknowledged that “people can’t wait forever for change”.

“They need breathing space now and I am determined to provide it,” he said.

So he reminded the conference hall of a change that’s coming this week - removing VAT from household electricity bills from October – as well as bus fares in England being capped at £2 from January.

“These things are not everything,” he continued.

“But I hope you will see it as a sign of our intent to get your bills and fares down as you wait for the bigger changes to come.”

The next big event in the political calendar will be next month's Budget.

As ever, we'll be keeping a close eye on what's announced, and here to let you know what it all means for you and your money.