'A lot of aspirations, a lot of priorities, but already criticism' for new UK government

Cutting taxes on people's electricity bills. It's the major new pledge today from the government of the new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham. The news announced by Downing Street as Burnham attempts to deliver on his promises to ease the country's cost of living crisis. Today is Burnham holding his first cabinet meeting with his new cabinet as the team prepare to launch into their priorities before the next election which has to be held at the latest in just over three years time. We're going to cross then to London, talk to our correspondent Benedict Paviot who joins us from there. Benedict, already a bit of a row brewing as to how this tax cut that's been announced is actually going to be financed. Yes, welcome to London and its new government of Andy Burnham. Day two in fact of the Burnham government and indeed a row is brewing. So what's happened is that early this morning an announcement was made by the government of this fresh tax cut to remove VAT from domestic electricity bills. It's thought that it would save about 45 pounds for an average household per year and that is due to start from the 1st of October and in fact John Healey, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Minister of Finances announced this and said it was very much to be funded, it was funded, fully funded and that this would help families with the cost of living. Cost of living being one of the main priorities of the new Prime Minister and would again this expression help some families breathe, give them some breathing space. The thing is that he has just been corrected overnight and then again this morning by someone who was in the Starmer government and it's not just anyone, it is the former Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones. Not only that, he's done that very publicly on social media and he said he's corrected Mr Healey and said actually it is not fully funded. So this is day two of this government and one wonders what the coming days, weeks and months will bring. Let me remind our viewers that this is basically scrutiny from a former government member. Of course there is the full glare of the opposition that is free obviously to talk to the media but what is not currently in effect is the scrutiny from the House of Commons. Why is that? Because since last Thursday there are what is called in recess on holiday and when is that next scrutiny of Parliament due to begin you might ask? Tuesday the 1st of September. Meanwhile Benedict, other announcements were expecting to come as of course the Cabinet gets down to business later on. Yes so obviously very important and in the full glare later on of the media there will be this first full Cabinet meeting around lunchtime. We expect of course to see them gathered, photographic evidence, filmed evidence of not them just walking up the street in their new various positions having culled, let's be very clear, yesterday that was his first task Mr Burnham culled about nine loyal Starmerite ministers. So you've got all kinds of new job and new faces coming or some old faces coming back into the government but of course what we're expecting are some more cost of living measures and some big announcements. There will be some this afternoon we believe, some later on this week. We don't know the nature of them but we do know that one of the priorities of the new Prime Minister is very much social care. We understand that Angela Rayner who's been brought back into government again as Housing Minister that that will be one of the things she's in charge of. Of course we think also there'll be a big programme to fund the council houses across the United Kingdom that's another priority of this new Prime Minister. Also this decentralisation that he is very keen on of course as former mayor for nine years of Greater Manchester. He will be going up north as they say down here in the south east in London to Manchester and we believe he's going to be somewhat of a commuter Prime Minister which would be a first and try and share his time between the number 10 door that you see here and Downing Street North. What form it will take is not very clear and yet we were hearing some reports last night that it's already up and coming and basically started to work behind the scenes. So a lot of announcements, a lot of aspirations, a lot of priorities but already criticism from the opposition, Kemi Badenoch saying you know a lot of kind of pledges but where you know where's the concrete and no scrutiny from Parliament. As for Nigel Farage the leader of Reform UK he wants nothing less although he's not an MP at the moment because he's obviously resigned as we know and standing again for Parliament but that's mid-August. He is very much wanting a general election. Is he going to get one? No.