Steve Reed has backed Andy Burnham’s plans to “go further and faster” on devolution, which the minister said would build on the “fantastic start” made by Sir Keir Starmer’s Government.
The Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary will set out his achievements on tackling regional inequalities in a Wednesday speech, which he denied was a pitch to remain in the post after Mr Burnham is expected to enter Downing Street.
He praised the prospective prime minister’s pledge to transfer power and money out of Whitehall and into the regions, driven by a new “No 10 North” based in Manchester.
Speaking to the Press Association on Tuesday, Mr Reed said the northern outpost was a “great idea” which would give Mr Burnham a “better sense of the issues and challenges that confront other parts of the country”.
“It’s quite right that Andy Burnham wants to put devolution and the equalisation of power across our country right at the heart of his agenda coming into government,” he said.
Asked whether Sir Keir’s Government had moved too slowly on this, Mr Reed said: “No. We’ve delivered the biggest programme of devolution in our country’s history.
“This is a journey that the country is now on to get power out of Westminster, down into our regions, and then into the hands of people in their own communities.”
He added that “you can’t make all of those changes overnight” as “the system would collapse”.
“So you have to go at the pace that the system can cope with.
“This Government has made a fantastic start, but Andy has made clear he wants to go further and faster, and I fully support that.”
Mr Reed rejected suggestions that his speech, at the Re:State conference in London, was an attempt to retain his brief in a Burnham cabinet.
He said it would detail what “this Government’s done to date, and where we’re looking to go next to speed it up.”
He pointed to the transfer of more decision-making to regional mayors through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026, including seizing public control of local transport systems, local government reorganisation, and the Government’s place-based agenda.
Pressed on whether he would be the one to oversee the future plans, Mr Reed said: “You’ll need to ask Andy Burnham about that, not me.”
The Housing Secretary dismissed comparisons between Mr Burnham’s plans and the former Tory prime minister Boris Johnson’s levelling-up agenda, which was seen to fail in part because not enough state resources and investment were pumped into it.
“This Government has already shown by what we’ve done to date, with packing funding resources and powers behind the devolution agenda, it is already making a difference.
“And Andy Burnham acknowledges and welcomes that, and has committed himself to going further and faster.
“So it couldn’t be more different from the hollow words of the Conservatives.”
Mr Reed, a Starmer loyalist, said he hoped Mr Burnham would be installed in No 10 “as quickly as possible” by the end of July as he enjoyed “very widespread support amongst the Parliamentary Labour Party”.
With Cabinet ministers appearing to jostle to stay in their jobs, Mr Reed said it was “normal” Mr Burnham was waiting to announce his ministerial appointments until after taking office.
Mr Burnham did not take questions from the media after his Monday speech, his first since Sir Keir announced his resignation.
But Mr Reed brushed aside accusations the presumptive prime minister was dodging scrutiny of his plans, saying the “speech spoke by itself”.
