What does Andy Burnham mean for food and farming?

Just two years ago, the food, farming and retail sectors were getting to grips with a change in government and a new prime minister. This week, they are yet again responding to a shuffle at the very top of government.

For the fifth time in just four years, the UK has a new prime minister. Andy Burnham officially took to 10 Downing Street this week with a message that he would bring the “biggest changes” to politics in 40 years. Among his cabinet reshuffle, Dame Angela Eagle was named secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs and Jonathan Reynolds became secretary of state for business, innovation, science and trade.

Much is still to be confirmed about Burnham’s specific policies. So far, he has pledged to help with the cost of living crisis, suggested potential movement on some business taxes and announced a priority for devolving more power to local councils and authorities.

Here’s what organisations representing food, farming, retail and hospitality have to say about the new PM.

Time to build a resilient food system

The NFU wrote to the prime minister to urge him to prioritise the resilience of Britain’s food supply chain. “British farmers and growers are the bedrock of the nation’s food security, putting food on the plates of 28 million households every day,” NFU President Tom Bradshaw said. “Yet while governments rightly treat defence and energy security as national priorities, food security has too often been overlooked.”

He urged the prime minister to take “immediate action by backing a planning system that unlocks investment, regulation that drives innovation and growth and ensuring there’s the workforce available farming and growing businesses need to thrive. Together, these measures would help build a more resilient food system and we stand ready to work with the government to deliver them.”

The government must remove hurdles that hold back British farmers, Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the BRC, added, “including on costs, planning restrictions, and reducing friction in EU realignment. This would allow the UK to build a more resilient and affordable food system that can deliver for both consumers and the economy long into the future.”

Food manufacturers stand ready to work with the new PM to build the “resilient, cutting-edge food system our country needs,” said Karen Betts, chief executive of the Food and Drink Federation. “That means urgently creating the conditions for innovation, growth and investment in skills, which will in turn drive renewed prosperity in communities everywhere across the UK.”

Future of Britain’s environment, health and economy at stake

In a letter to the prime minister, Brendan Costelloe, Soil Association policy director, urged Burnham to ensure farmers get support to improve their soils and increase resilience to climate change.

“Transitioning the food system is just as critical to the country as transitioning the energy system, yet it currently receives a fraction of the investment.”

Communities and local economies must be at the heart of the food system, Brendan continued. “We need shorter supply chains that get healthy food to those in society that need it most, in the process creating bigger markets for a diverse range of farmers producing to certified high standards.”

The Soil Association also praised the PM’s move to make the Greater Manchester Food Partnership Board the first combined authority member of Sustainable Food Places under his mayoralty, explaining that this “sophisticated understanding of the relationship between diet and local food environments, and what progressive local government can do to improve this in partnership with local businesses and communities” could be transformative if scaled across the country.

Small businesses ‘optimistic’ for change

The new prime minister has already set out a positive, pro-small business stall in recent weeks, said Tina McKenzie, policy chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), “and we are optimistic that he can galvanise the new government to make these plans a reality. 

“That will mean reworking the mistakes on business rates made by the last government, by increasing Small Business Rate Relief, acting on costs after the sledgehammer of National Insurance rises, and scrapping pointless paperwork that holds business back.”

The last government did get some things “unquestionably right,” Tina added, such as the new late payment laws currently going through the Lords. But ‘standing firm’ with small businesses “must include taking novel steps to drive change through the system, including opening up procurement and making sure that decisions that impact local communities are made locally.”

Karen Dear, CEO of the Craft Bakers Association (CBA), told Speciality Food her one wish for the new PM was to undertake “meaningful consultation with small businesses before introducing legislation that affects them”.

“Too often, policies are designed with large organisations in mind, businesses with HR departments, legal teams and the resources to absorb change. That simply is not the reality for the UK’s independent bakeries.”

The cumulative impact of policies like rising National Minimum Wage, increased Employer National Insurance contributions, Statutory Sick Pay and more are “placing enormous pressure on independent businesses operating on already tight margins”.

Independent bakeries support paying people fairly and creating a good workplace, Karen said, “What they are asking is whether government truly understands how these decisions affect a small business trying to balance the books every week. Accessing support is often far more difficult than it appears, and many businesses simply do not have the capacity to absorb continuous increases in costs.”

For small food producers, Brendon Manders from Lumberjaxe Food Company says the PM can do more to back challenger food brands. “Navigating this industry as a startup is hard work,” he told Speciality Food. “Smaller businesses are getting completely bogged down by complex regulations,” he said. “The government needs to simplify compliance so we can focus on what we do best - cooking up good times and making great products.”

Secondly, he said, the need to sort out the supply chain. “The cost of everything – from ingredients to logistics – has gone through the roof, hitting independent producers and retailers the hardest. We need Andy Burnham to back local supply chains and tackle rocketing manufacturing costs so challenger brands can actually afford to scale up.”

And third, Brendon urged the PM to open up grassroots funding. “Getting early-stage finance from banks is a proper nightmare right now… The government needs to expand local enterprise funding and support the grafters right at the bottom, because the small startup businesses of today are the ones who are going to create the jobs tomorrow.”

Reforms are needed to boost retail

The British Retail Consortium, meanwhile, called on the PM to work with retailers to back reforms to employment costs, business rates, energy and regulation needed to support jobs, growth and a thriving high street.

“Retail is where the economy shows up in everyday life. It is where millions of people earn a living. Retail is part of the everyday economy, touching every community across the UK,” explained Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC.

“When retail thrives, more people are in work, investment flows into local communities, and fierce competition drives prices down for families. But cumulative costs and fragmented policy decisions are holding the industry back.”

Retailers, she said, have absorbed £6.5 billion in additional employment costs since 2024, as well as billions more in new packaging taxes, business rates, and rising electricity costs.

“Andy Burnham has made collaborating with business to drive growth, high streets, and living standards central to his ambition. Retail is a key partner to deliver it: with the right policies, retail can drive investment, support jobs in every postcode, and keep household essentials affordable,” Helen said.

Businesses thrive on “long-term certainty”, added Shevaun Haviland, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, who welcomed the PM’s pledge for stability and a 10-year plan. “The cost of living and the cost of doing business are two sides of the same coin, so it’s vital that Prime Minister also gives firms ‘breathing space’ from cost pressures. 

“Our surveys show energy and taxation are squeezing businesses, hitting confidence and investment. Easing the cost of doing business will deliver the growth we all want to see.” 

Put hospitality at the heart of the UK’s growth agenda

Over recent years, Steve Perez, founder and CEO of Global Brands told Speciality Food the hospitality sector has been hit exceptionally hard by policy instability from previous governments. “And when hospitality struggles, it isn’t just businesses that suffer, it is people’s livelihoods, local communities, and the wider labour market.”

The new PM has an opportunity to put hospitality back at the heart of the UK’s growth agenda with three changes, he said. First, reduce VAT rates for hospitality. “If there is one policy that could transform the outlook for hospitality, it is reducing VAT from the current 20% rate to something closer to the 10-13% commonly seen across much of Europe,” Steve says. “A lower VAT rate would stimulate investment, improve affordability for consumers and give hospitality businesses the confidence to grow, recruit and invest.”

Second, review business rates for pubs. “Andy Burnham has previously said that ‘Labour have got it wrong on small businesses’, and he’s absolutely correct on this.” So far in 2026, pubs are closing at a rate of almost two per day. “That’s why business rates need urgent reform. While recent relief measures have provided some support, the underlying valuation system remains flawed.”

And third, scrap the planned tourist tax for UK holidays. “It’s a tax that would not only hurt the pockets of holidaying Brits, but also the restaurants, pubs, bars, cafés and hotels that all rely on a tourism trade to continue operating and employing local people – especially in rural and coastal communities.”

Stuart Gillies, the chef and restaurateur operating Number Eight and Bank House restaurants in Kent, told Speciality Food that more support is also needed to help businesses employ young and older people either full time or part time.

“The new introduction of the NI for young people, plus the upcoming introduction of restricted zero-hour contracts, stops small businesses employing young people aged 16 - 25, because it’s just too expensive when revenue is inconsistent,” he explained.

“There needs to be support for SMEs to employ people and kickstart the business economy as without this there is only gradual decline in employment, earnings and business productivity, so zero growth, zero new jobs, zero taxable income.”