Exclusive: Mayors are to be given powers to control water companies under Andy Burnham’s plans to increase state control of utilities. The Prime Minister is planning to announce nine new regional bodies to oversee water firms, with local political leaders sitting on them alongside public health and environmental officials and customers. The policy, likely to be announced as a central part of Burnham’s “10-year plan” later this year, will be his first attempt to define his plan for “public control” of water and energy firms. It is borrowed from the Cunliffe review of the water sector earlier this year, which first recommended regional boards. The idea was not taken up by the Starmer administration. The plan would see a new layer of regional water bureaucracy, with a significant role for local mayors, set the objectives of water companies, collate public feedback and hold bosses to account. It follows months of investor uncertainty, after Burnham said in June he would support full nationalisation in some cases. Since then, the cost of debt for British water companies has soared and bosses have been left unsure whether they can legally be taken over in a state buyout.

Former Labour housing secretary Steve Reed says that Andy Burnham must be “very, very careful” about devolution and make sure that “allocations of funds is done fairly and that includes being fair to London”. "People have misunderstood Manchesterism in London to mean that they fear Manchester will be prioritised over London.” @CalumAM | @SteveReedMP

The front runner being foisted on the people of Holborn by Labour to replace the former Prime Minister Keir Starmer in our Parliament was born in Somalia. Do you understand what’s happening?