Burnham to address social care, youth unemployment and devolution

Burnham to address social care, youth unemployment and devolutionImage source, Getty ImagesByHenry Zeffman, Chief political correspondent and Ella KiplingPublishedJust nowAndy Burnham will make speeches on social care, youth unemployment and devolution next week in what No 10 says is an attempt to show he is "hitting the ground running" as prime minister.Downing Street described the three areas as "some of the most difficult issues facing the country that have been ignored for too long".Burnham first proposed a universal system of social care in England in 2009 when he was health secretary under Gordon Brown. He has vowed to spend political capital on the issue as prime minister.A No 10 source said: "Andy is going to run towards problems that have been neglected, giving people hope again."Andy Burnham's first week pledges - how much do they add up to?Published1 day agoSackings, cabinet surprises and policies: Burnham's first 24 hours as PMPublished4 days agoThe source said: "He has the courage to fix the most difficult issues that have been ignored for years and seen as impossible to resolve. He doesn't accept that they are. They can't be ignored any longer."The prime minister is determined to show that governments can make people's lives better if they choose to. He wants to get Britain believing again."Unlike the NHS, social care is not free at the point of use, and people with savings worth more than £23,250 are not entitled to help with the cost of care from their local council.Burnham would not be the first leader in recent years to pledge to address the issue of adult social care. In 2019, in his first speech as prime minister, Boris Johnson said the Conservative Party would "fix the crisis in social care once and for all".Five years later in July 2024, Keir Starmer faced criticism when Labour scrapped plans for an £86,000 cap on the amount anyone in England would need to spend on...