Burnham says he will explain how he will find billions for the military and social care in first Labour conference speech as leader amid tax rise fears

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 11:40 EDT, 28 September 2026 | Updated: 12:15 EDT, 28 September 2026 Andy Burnham says he will reveal how he plans to fund major multi-billion-pound investments in the Armed Forces and adult social care in his first Labour Party Conference speech as leader.The Prime Minister is under pressure to explain the source of the sizeable spending commitments amid fears they will be paid for through higher taxes or more borrowing.He and his ministers have so far refused to reveal when they will hit a target of spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence.He is also being accused of planning a 'death tax' on family estates to pay for social care free at the point of delivery like the NHS.Asked about defence cash in an LBC interview today Mr Burnham said: 'We have a commitment to 2035 and what I'll set out tomorrow is how we do that, how we change things so that we can make the necessary investment in defence.'Asked whether his plans for social care reform would be funded by a new tax or spending cuts elsewhere, he said: 'I will reveal detail tomorrow.'It comes just a day after Wes Streeting said they were trying to avoid spooking the markets with an unfunded announcement. The Prime Minister is under pressure to explain the source of the sizeable spending commitments amid fears they will be paid for through higher taxes or more borrowing He and his ministers have so far refused to reveal when they will hit a target of spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence (pictured is new attack sub HMS Agamemnon)The Defence Secretary said that setting an arbitrary date without showing how it was to be achieved would increase the cost of borrowing when it is already high. The UK has promised to commit 3.5 per cent of national income on defence by 2035, in line with a pledge by Nato members. The Government has budgeted to hike defence spending to 2.7 per cent by 2027-28, but Andy Burnham and his ministers have refused to say if another target of 3 per cent by 2030 will be hit.Government borrowing costs have soared in recent weeks, with the yield on UK gilts hitting the highest levels since the 2007 financial crisis, and the head of the International Monetary Fund said the UK must cut borrowing and reduce debt levels.In his first Labour Party conference speech since taking over at the Treasury, John Healey announced a £6billion boost for shipbuilding in the UK including the building of three floating docks for the HM Naval Base Clyde at Faslane.Mr Healey resigned as defence secretary in a row over military spending, accusing the Treasury of being 'unwilling to commit the resources that the nation needs' to defend itself.But he now faces pressure to increase defence spending at October's Budget and next year's spending review, against a background of rising borrowing costs, sluggish economic growth and the fallout from the Iran war.Interviewed by Politico at the Labour Party conference, Mr Streeting said Mr Healey did not need 'persuading' of the case for more spending, and his job would be to 'make it easy for him to say yes'.He said: 'I keep on saying to the Ministry of Defence, I don't want any complacency.'We can't just send in John Healey's resignation letter as our submission to the spending review.'We've got to demonstrate not only why we need more and what we would do with it, but how we're spending the money we already have.'Mr Streeting added that he would 'drive hard on value for money, productivity, and making sure we deal with the procurement challenges that have plagued the MoD'.