The Downing Street hopeful is drawing up plans that will impact how the Treasury implements policy
Andy Burnham is plotting a Treasury overhaul if he becomes Prime Minister, a senior Labour Party ally has confirmed.
The former Greater Manchester Mayor, who is widely expected to replace Prime Minister Keir Starmer, is understood to be planning major changes to the fiscal status quo.
Former Transport Minister Louise Haigh has disclosed that Mr Burnham intends to expand Downing Street's control over economic matters while shelving any immediate plans to dismantle the Treasury.
Speaking on the BBC's Political Thinking podcast, the former Transport Secretary described Number 10 as "criminally underfunded" with inadequate staffing and insufficient authority.
However, Ms Haigh indicated that comprehensive Treasury reform would not happen before the 2029 general election due to practical constraints.
Mr Burnham's central policy agenda centres on shifting power from Westminster to regional bodies, and he has previously signalled intentions to redistribute decision-making responsibilities currently held by the Treasury.
Ms Haigh acknowledged that the Treasury wields excessive influence across government policy areas, describing it as "all-powerful" in its reach over public affairs.
The Labour MP shared: "The Treasury is all-powerful and does exert, I think, too much power over other areas of public policy."
Yet she cautioned that dismantling the department would prove counterproductive given the limited timeframe available.
Ms Haigh explained: "I think whilst Andy has a clear plan for some of that because he thinks really deeply about rewiring the state, I don't think in two and a half years we've got time to break up the Treasury. because it would just drag everything down and be a huge distraction."
The former cabinet minister also launched a pointed critique of Sir Keir's approach following Labour's 2024 election triumph, arguing the administration squandered public goodwill almost immediately.
Ms Haigh's departure from government in November 2024 marked the first ministerial resignation under Sir Keir's leadership, triggered by revelations about a fraud conviction from a decade earlier.
The incident involved her falsely reporting to police in 2013 that her work mobile phone had been stolen during a mugging, when it had not actually been taken. Magistrates issued her a conditional discharge for the offence, which occurred before she entered Parliament.
During the podcast interview with Nick Robinson, Haigh revealed she had informed Sir Keir about her conviction while Labour remained in opposition.
She alleged that hostile briefings against her represented a "deliberate attempt to knock my character down".
