Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch launched a broad offensive against Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Thursday, questioning how he would fund his policies during a speech in central London while warning that a lack of business experience in his Cabinet is "terrifying".
Badenoch intensified her focus on governance, criticising Burnham for replacing the technology department with a single cabinet minister and calling Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh's 2030 net-zero target impossible. She adopted a schedule of regular press conferences and media appearances resembling Nigel Farage's strategy last summer.
Visiting an industrial site near Newport, Badenoch said she would be "very worried" about further powers going to a Plaid Cymru-led Welsh government, following First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth's meeting with Burnham in Glasgow a day earlier. She ruled out formal coalitions but said she would support sensible proposals aligned with Conservative policy. A Labour spokesperson defended the government's record, citing electricity tax cuts and business rate reductions.