The Miami Heat, fresh off missing out on LeBron James in free agency, are exploring a blockbuster trade for Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant, according to multiple reports circulating this week, as the franchise looks to add another superstar alongside newly acquired forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Riley signals more moves are coming

Heat president Pat Riley signaled the team’s continued ambition shortly after completing the trade for Antetokounmpo, telling reporters the front office was not done reshaping the roster. “We landed the plane. There’s another one we have to land,” Riley said, a comment widely interpreted as confirmation that Miami intends to pursue at least one more marquee addition this offseason.

With James ultimately choosing to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers rather than Miami, the Heat have shifted their focus toward trade options that could pair a second star alongside Antetokounmpo heading into his first season in South Florida.

The proposed trade framework

One trade concept gaining traction would send Andrew Wiggins and Nikola Jovic to Houston, along with Miami absorbing the contracts involved, in exchange for Durant and veteran center Clint Capela. Wiggins is currently playing on an expiring $30 million salary, a detail that helps the money work under NBA salary-cap rules. According to reporting on the proposal, the trade would be permissible under the league’s collective bargaining agreement even with both teams operating near the first tax apron next season.

A separate version of the trade speculation has floated a package built around Wiggins and Jovic that would also send Miami’s 2029 first-round pick to Houston, potentially giving the Heat a starting lineup featuring Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo and Durant — a trio that would immediately position Miami among the Eastern Conference’s most talked-about contenders on paper.

Why Houston might listen

The Rockets are not actively shopping Durant, but people familiar with the situation have indicated the team would be open to entertaining a strong offer rather than treating the two-time MVP as untouchable. Houston’s hesitation to move him stems less from a desire to keep the roster intact than from a need for a return package significant enough to justify parting with a player of Durant’s caliber, particularly after acquiring him in a seven-team blockbuster trade only a year ago.

Tension surrounding Durant’s fit in Houston has also fueled speculation about his future. Reports following the Rockets’ playoff exit to the Los Angeles Lakers pointed to friction between Durant and the team’s younger core, with some accounts suggesting Durant had anonymously criticized teammates through an unidentified social media account during the season. That reported discord, combined with Houston’s early playoff exit despite Durant playing in just a single postseason game due to injury, has added fuel to speculation that the Rockets could be willing to move on.

From Houston’s perspective, acquiring Wiggins would add a well-regarded three-and-D wing to a young core built around Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson and Fred VanVleet, giving the Rockets a proven veteran who could complement their younger talent while bringing playoff experience to the rotation.

Miami’s limited trade assets

Any deal faces a significant obstacle in Miami’s depleted trade capital. The Heat gave up a substantial haul to acquire Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks, sending out Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis, the No. 13 pick in the 2026 draft, future first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, and a 2030 first-round pick swap. That transaction, combined with the offseason departure of guard Norman Powell in free agency, has left Miami with comparatively little draft capital or young talent remaining to offer in a Durant deal, a dynamic that has made executives around the league skeptical Houston would view Miami’s package as sufficiently compelling.

How LeBron’s decision factored in

Miami’s pursuit of a second star comes directly on the heels of James choosing Philadelphia over Miami in free agency. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, James was reportedly concerned that Miami’s roster, thinned out by the Antetokounmpo trade, lacked the depth needed to realistically contend for a championship in the near term. By comparison, Windhorst reported that James viewed the 76ers as offering a more balanced roster, with shooting and playmaking better suited to complement his game heading into what he has described as the final chapter of his career.

That outcome left Miami searching for alternative ways to build out its roster around Antetokounmpo, with Durant emerging as one of several names connected to the team in trade speculation this offseason. Other veterans, including Denver’s Jamal Murray and Washington’s Anthony Davis, have also surfaced in broader trade chatter involving the Heat, though league sources have generally described interest in Durant specifically as more speculative than advanced, given the asset mismatch between the two sides.

Durant, 37, has two years and $90 million remaining on his contract, including a player option, a structure that gives Houston some flexibility in deciding how urgently to move him. League evaluators have expressed skepticism that a robust trade market for Durant currently exists given his age and remaining salary, suggesting any Miami deal would likely require additional third-party involvement or a further reshuffling of assets to satisfy Houston’s asking price.

For now, the Heat’s pursuit of Durant remains speculative rather than advanced, but Riley’s public comments about having “another plane to land” have kept the rumor mill active as Miami continues searching for its next move to complement Antetokounmpo heading into the 2026-27 season.

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A 78-year-old woman died and more than 20 other people, most of them firefighters and emergency medical workers, were injured Saturday when a fast-moving fire tore through a row of century-old wood-frame homes in the Flushing section of Queens, New York City fire officials said.

The New York City Fire Department said it received the initial call around 9:52 a.m. for a fire at a home near College Point Boulevard and 41st Road. Firefighters arriving at the scene found two buildings already fully engulfed in flames, with the fire quickly spreading to a third structure. The response was escalated in stages, ultimately reaching five alarms as more than 250 firefighters and emergency medical personnel, operating across 84 units, converged on the scene.

A dangerous rescue under intense heat

The buildings involved were part of a row of five wood-frame homes built around 1930, according to fire officials. FDNY Chief of Fire Operations Kevin Woods said the structures’ wooden walls, floors and roofs allowed the flames to spread unusually fast, making it difficult for crews to get ahead of the fire even as they moved in aggressively to attack it from multiple directions.

After receiving reports that people remained trapped inside, firefighters pushed to the second floor of the main fire building and searched through intense heat and zero visibility, ultimately locating and rescuing an occupant without the protection of a hose line — a high-risk maneuver fire officials say reflects the urgency crews faced in the moment. Woods later praised the response, describing the firefighters’ work in preventing the blaze from spreading to two additional adjoining homes with similar wood-frame construction as “phenomenal.”

A woman’s death confirmed hours later

The New York Police Department said a 78-year-old woman who lived in one of the burning homes was taken to the hospital in critical condition and later died from her injuries. Her name had not been released as of Saturday evening. A second resident of the home suffered what officials described as minor injuries.

Witnesses described scenes of chaos and heavy smoke as the fire spread through the block. “It’s horrible. It’s sad. I can’t describe it,” said Yezen Al-Swaiti, who witnessed the blaze, capturing the shock felt by neighbors as they watched flames and smoke overtake the row of homes.

Dozens hurt battling the blaze

Beyond the civilian casualties, fire officials said at least 21 first responders were transported to local hospitals, most suffering non-life-threatening injuries that included heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation, and minor strains and sprains sustained while fighting the fire in difficult conditions. Five of the injured firefighters sustained moderate to serious injuries, with one hospitalized in serious condition. Officials said all injured service members were expected to survive.

Woods said the scale of the response, which included calling in additional firefighting and EMS units well beyond what a typical residential fire would require, was intended to ensure crews had proper relief as they worked for hours in extreme heat and hazardous smoke conditions.

Extensive damage, families displaced

The three buildings most directly affected by the fire sustained heavy damage, and officials said an estimated 10 to 12 residents have been displaced as a result. Some of those displaced are staying with relatives, while the American Red Cross has stepped in to assist others who lack immediate housing options.

Fire crews managed to stop the flames from spreading further down the row of homes, protecting the two remaining structures from suffering similar damage. The fire was declared under control at 1:47 p.m., roughly four hours after the initial call, though the FDNY said it expected to remain on scene for an extended period afterward to monitor for hotspots and ensure the blaze did not reignite.

Cause remains under investigation

As of Saturday evening, fire officials had not determined what sparked the blaze. Investigators are expected to examine the scene in the coming days as part of a broader effort to determine the fire’s origin and how it was able to spread so rapidly across multiple structures in such a short period of time.

The age and construction style of the affected homes — wood-frame structures dating back nearly a century — is likely to draw scrutiny as investigators assess both the cause of the fire and the factors that allowed it to escalate so quickly once it began.

A reminder of the risks firefighters face

Saturday’s fire adds to a string of major multi-alarm blazes New York City firefighters have battled this year, underscoring the physical toll such incidents routinely take on first responders even when structures are ultimately saved and casualties are minimized. The high number of firefighter injuries, even without fatalities among first responders, reflects the extreme conditions crews frequently operate under when battling fast-spreading fires in older, densely built residential blocks.

City officials have not yet indicated whether the incident will prompt any broader review of fire safety standards for older wood-frame housing stock in the area, though such reviews have followed similarly destructive fires in the city’s outer boroughs in past years.

For now, the Flushing community is left grappling with the loss of a longtime resident and the displacement of several families, even as fire officials credited the rapid and expansive response with preventing what could have been a far more devastating outcome across the full row of homes.

BLAINE, Minn. — A 21-year-old who turned professional barely a month ago is on the verge of one of the more improbable breakthrough wins of the PGA Tour season, holding a three-shot lead entering the final round of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities.

Jackson Koivun, playing in just his 13th career PGA Tour start and third as a professional, fired a bogey-free 10-under 61 in Saturday’s third round, highlighted by a tournament-record back-nine 28 that included two eagles. The performance vaulted him to 20 under par through 54 holes, tying the 3M Open’s 54-hole scoring record of 193 set by wire-to-wire 2023 champion Lee Hodges.

Koivun’s meteoric rise

Koivun enters Sunday having already established himself as one of the most decorated amateurs in recent college golf history. At Auburn, he became the first player ever to win college golf’s three most prestigious individual honors — the Jack Nicklaus Award, the Ben Hogan Award and the Fred Haskins Award — in back-to-back years, cementing his reputation before he ever teed it up as a pro. He turned professional last month, forgoing his senior season, and earned his PGA Tour card through PGA Tour University Accelerated.

Despite the lack of professional experience, Koivun has shown no signs of nerves under pressure. Describing his mindset after Saturday’s record-setting round, he kept things simple. “It felt great. It’s what you work for,” Koivun said, acknowledging he felt some nerves but leaned on his experience competing in high-stakes moments during his college career at Auburn.

Who’s chasing him

Koivun doesn’t have the final round to himself. Emiliano Grillo and Ben Kohles are tied for second at 17 under after each carding bogey-free 65s on Saturday. Grillo, a two-time PGA Tour winner, brings experience at TPC Twin Cities specifically, having posted three previous top-10 finishes at the 3M Open. He capped his third round with an eagle on the 18th hole, giving him momentum heading into Sunday even after several missed putting opportunities earlier in the round.

Kohles, meanwhile, is chasing his first career PGA Tour title in his 122nd start. The five-time Korn Ferry Tour winner opened the tournament with a first-round 62 to take the early lead and has remained near the top of the leaderboard throughout the week. He has said he plans to attack the course aggressively from the start of Sunday’s round, aiming to apply pressure on Koivun early rather than playing a more conservative, wait-and-see approach.

Michael Brennan and Chandler Phillips share fourth place at 16 under, while a trio of Denny McCarthy, Billy Horschel and Michael Kim sit in a tie for sixth at 15 under. Kim, notably, produced one of the week’s signature moments on Friday, carding a 12-under 59 to become just the 15th player in PGA Tour history to break 60 in a round. He cooled off with a 70 on Saturday, dropping him five shots off the lead, but remains within striking distance heading into the final 18 holes.

Scheffler still lurks, six back

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler entered the week as the tournament’s biggest draw, marking his first-ever appearance at the 3M Open. Scheffler struggled with his putter through the opening two rounds before catching fire late in Saturday’s third round, closing with five birdies and an eagle on the back nine for a 7-under 64. That surge moved him into a four-way tie for ninth place at 14 under, alongside Davis Thompson, Seamus Power and Brian Harman — six shots behind Koivun with 18 holes to play.

While six shots is a significant gap, Scheffler’s track record of low final rounds and his status as the sport’s most dominant current player mean he can’t be ruled out entirely, particularly on a course at TPC Twin Cities that has historically rewarded aggressive, birdie-heavy scoring.

A course built for low scores

This year’s 3M Open has reinforced the tournament’s reputation as one of the lowest-scoring stops on the PGA Tour calendar. Between Kim’s 59 on Friday and Koivun’s record-setting 61 on Saturday, the week has already produced two of the most memorable individual rounds of the 2026 season. Grillo pointed to the strength of the young players chasing the title as a defining storyline of the week, noting how difficult it has become to keep pace with the tour’s rising talent, a reflection of how competitive the leaderboard has remained even as scores have plummeted.

What’s at stake Sunday

The tournament carries an $8.8 million purse, with the winner set to collect $1.584 million. Defending champion Kurt Kitayama, who won last year’s edition with a final-round 65 to hold off Sam Stevens, is also in the field looking for his first win of the 2026 season.

Sunday’s final round tees off with Koivun and Grillo in the last pairing at 1:40 p.m. ET, with coverage beginning on Golf Channel at 1 p.m. before shifting to CBS at 3 p.m. If Koivun holds his three-shot advantage, he would become one of the fastest players in recent memory to capture a PGA Tour title, doing so in just his third start as a professional. But with Grillo, Kohles and a hard-charging Scheffler all lurking on a course built for low scores, Sunday’s final round at TPC Twin Cities is shaping up as anything but a formality.

Kyrie Irving trade speculation has followed the Dallas Mavericks through much of this NBA offseason, but as free agency winds down, the team’s message to interested suitors has remained remarkably consistent: Irving isn’t available, and he’s expected back on the roster when the 2026-27 season begins.

Interest from multiple contenders

Irving, a nine-time All-Star who has spent parts of four seasons with Dallas since arriving in a 2023 trade from Brooklyn, has drawn trade interest from around the league this summer despite missing the entire 2025-26 season while recovering from a torn ACL. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, both the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves have shown interest in acquiring the 34-year-old guard, with Minnesota in particular seen as a team that could pair him with All-Star Anthony Edwards in a bid to strengthen its backcourt after consecutive deep playoff runs.

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported in May that multiple contenders were monitoring Irving’s situation closely, a reflection of both his remaining talent and the uncertainty created by his injury recovery timeline. That interest intensified further amid reports tied to LeBron James’ prolonged free agency search, with ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill reporting that James had at one point aimed to have Irving traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of a broader push to reunite with his former championship-winning teammate.

Dallas has repeatedly said no

Despite the steady stream of outside interest, Dallas has consistently rebuffed inquiries. NBA insider Brett Siegel reported this week that the Mavericks have held firm in recent conversations with other front offices. “There’s been no trade talks over the last month regarding Kyrie Irving,” Siegel said, adding that while teams including the Pistons and Timberwolves reached out early in free agency to gauge Irving’s availability, Dallas’ response has been unambiguous: Irving is not on the trade block, and the team has no plans to change that stance.

That position has held even as James’ free agency saga created renewed speculation about a possible Irving trade tied to wherever James ultimately signed. With James choosing the Philadelphia 76ers over Cleveland, Fox Sports characterized the outcome as effectively ending any realistic path toward an Irving-James reunion, since the scenario most likely to pull Irving out of Dallas depended on James landing with the Cavaliers.

New leadership backs an Irving-Flagg pairing

Much of Dallas’ resolve around Irving appears tied to the front office’s plans for the team’s young star, Cooper Flagg, the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year. New Mavericks president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri has publicly expressed interest in seeing Irving and Flagg share the court, a sentiment echoed by ownership. NBA insider Marc J. Spears said he expects Irving to remain with Dallas at least to start the season, citing both organizational and ownership-level support for the pairing. “I do think he’ll be back on the roster,” Spears said, adding that the team’s owner is “really, really high” on seeing Irving and Flagg play together, a vision Ujiri reinforced during his introductory press conference with the organization.

The stakes carry extra significance given both players’ college backgrounds. Irving and Flagg are both former No. 1 overall draft picks out of Duke, a distinction shared by only a handful of players in the program’s history. Seeing two of Duke’s No. 1 picks share an NBA backcourt would mark a first for the program’s alumni base, adding a layer of storyline interest beyond the basketball fit itself.

Irving has already begun building early chemistry within the new-look organization. He appeared courtside alongside Flagg during NBA Summer League action, with Ujiri using the moment to again shut down trade speculation surrounding the veteran guard. New head coach Dusty May has also spoken positively about Irving’s early workouts, expressing enthusiasm about incorporating him into the team’s plans for next season.

A speculative trade idea resurfaces

Even with Dallas’ firm public stance, hypothetical trade scenarios have continued to circulate. One recent proposal floated sending Irving, Daniel Gafford and other pieces to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for center Joel Embiid and a 2028 first-round pick, a deal framed as a way for James to reunite with a former teammate now that he has joined Philadelphia. The scenario, described even by those who floated it as unlikely, would pair two players with extensive recent injury histories — Irving and Embiid have combined for just 107 regular-season games since the start of the 2024-25 season — making it a difficult sell for either front office to seriously pursue.

Other Dallas veterans remain more available

While Irving has stayed off the trade block, other Mavericks veterans have not received the same protection. Reports indicate Dallas has continued fielding offers on players including Daniel Gafford, Klay Thompson and P.J. Washington, part of a broader effort by Ujiri’s front office to reshape the roster around Flagg without disturbing its plans for Irving. That distinction has reinforced the sense around the league that Dallas views Irving as central to its rebuilding timeline rather than a trade chip to be dealt for future assets.

Where things stand

With free agency largely settled following James’ decision to sign with Philadelphia, the pressure that had been building around a potential Irving trade tied to James’ free agency has eased considerably. Barring a dramatic change in Dallas’ approach, Irving appears positioned to open the 2026-27 season with the Mavericks, working to return to full strength after his ACL recovery while the organization builds its long-term plans around the pairing of its veteran point guard and its reigning Rookie of the Year.

LEGE-CAP FERRET, France — France dispatched a military cargo plane to douse wildfires with tons of flame retardant on Saturday, while organizers shortened the final stage of the Tour de France to redirect security personnel toward the blazes, as wildfires across France and Spain forced more than 250,000 people from their homes this week.

The fires, among the most severe to strike southern Europe this summer, have displaced roughly 70,000 people in central Spain alone. One person has died so far: a man in the municipality of Manises, part of Spain’s wildfire-hit Valencia region, according to a statement from local officials.

A giant aircraft joins the fight in France

In southwestern France, an A400M military transport plane specially converted for firefighting swept low over drought-stricken woodland, trailing a long plume of ochre-colored retardant as ground crews battled flames authorities feared could reach the wine-producing city of Bordeaux. The aircraft joined at least 18 other water- and retardant-dropping planes and helicopters working in rotation through smoke-filled skies over the Gironde region, according to French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez.

The scale of the response prompted race organizers and the Paris police department to shorten Sunday’s 21st and final stage of the Tour de France, France’s marquee annual sporting event. Rather than starting from Thoiry, west of Paris, as originally planned, riders will race a circuit inside the capital covering 89 kilometers, cut by roughly a third from the previously scheduled 133-kilometer route. Organizers said part of the race’s security detail would instead reinforce emergency response efforts in the fire-affected areas, describing the change as one of several “exceptional measures made necessary by the situation.”

Shifting winds threaten Bordeaux

Nunez said winds were expected to shift from west to east on Saturday afternoon, potentially pushing flames closer to Bordeaux. Fire crews and authorities responded by digging containment trenches, applying retardant and taking other measures to slow the fire’s advance. Nunez predicted a “long and very difficult” fight ahead, noting the blaze remained about 30 kilometers west of the city, though it had lost some intensity overnight.

The regional prefect overseeing Gironde said the fire had grown into “a firestorm” on Friday after igniting earlier in the week, adding that it “remains dangerous” even as firefighters made incremental progress. French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu called the fires unprecedented, saying the Gironde blaze had grown so intense by Friday that it began generating its own wind patterns. The government mobilized soldiers to support fire crews and rushed 1.5 million face masks into the region to protect residents and responders from choking smoke.

Authorities ordered evacuations for people caught between the fire and Bordeaux, including residents in parts of the city’s western suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. Alerts instructing people to leave were sent directly to residents’ mobile phones, according to Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas, who said the fire had already destroyed approximately 140 homes in the region.

In Bordeaux itself, officials opened an exhibition center to shelter evacuees, offering food and temporary housing, with the city’s mayor saying the facility could accommodate as many as 10,000 people if needed. The city’s airport remained open, though its bus and tram services were suspended.

Spain faces its own fast-moving crisis

West of Madrid, Spanish authorities deployed 2,600 firefighters, police officers and other emergency personnel to battle two separate blazes, supported by 19 water-dropping aircraft and helicopters. Firefighters described the fires as moving too fast and violently to confront directly.

Among the hardest-hit communities was El Tiemblo, where flames tore through a historic chestnut grove and left residents scrambling to protect their town. “We’ve never seen anything like this,” said Javier Organista, a resident of El Tiemblo. “When we saw the flames coming into our town, surrounding us, leaving us with practically no way out, all the neighbors joined together to try to stop its advance.” Reflecting on the damage, he added simply, “It’s just really sad.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, visiting a command post west of Madrid on Saturday, said improving weather conditions offered “a window of opportunity” for crews to gain control of the fires. Officials in Madrid’s regional government said the blazes had already begun decreasing in intensity as winds and temperatures eased somewhat over the weekend.

Sánchez noted that wildfires have already burned roughly 130,000 hectares of forest in Spain so far this year, well above the country’s annual average of about 100,000 hectares over the past decade.

Climate change fuels a dangerous pattern

Officials and fire crews across both countries pointed to an unusually early and intense series of heat waves this year as a key driver behind the fires’ speed and severity. Successive record-breaking temperatures have dried out forests and scrubland across the region, turning them into tinderboxes vulnerable to rapid ignition and spread.

In France, 1,400 firefighters were deployed to the Gironde blaze, with hundreds more sent to a separate wildfire farther south in the Landes region. Authorities said dozens of firefighters had suffered injuries amid chaotic evacuation scenes, with police going door to door urging residents to leave and some people fleeing coastal tourist towns by boat as flames approached.

International support mobilizes

Several other European nations have stepped in to help contain the fires. Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Slovakia, Germany and Switzerland have either sent or pledged to deploy water-dropping aircraft and helicopters to reinforce firefighting efforts in both France and Spain.

With winds shifting and weather conditions offering only a narrow opening for progress, officials in both countries cautioned that the fight was far from over, even as crews pressed to take advantage of any lull before conditions could worsen again.

Labour would be the largest party in the House of Commons but fall 117 seats short of an overall majority if a general election were held now, according to a seat projection published by UK Polling Report, as Prime Minister Andy Burnham ruled out going to the country before 2029.

The projection puts Labour on 209 MPs, 202 fewer than the 411 the party won at the 2024 general election, and short of the 326 seats needed to command a majority.

Reform UK would come second on 149 seats, with the Conservatives on 133 and the Liberal Democrats on 72. The SNP would take 44 seats, the Greens seven and Plaid Cymru four.

The seat numbers are drawn from an average of opinion polls that puts Reform on just under 25 per cent, Labour on 22 per cent and the Conservatives on 20 per cent.

Reform therefore leads on votes but trails on seats. UK Polling Report’s analysis attributes that to the first-past-the-post system, which rewards Labour for a wider geographical spread of support.

Burnham, who entered Downing Street on 20 July as Britain’s seventh prime minister in a decade, was asked about the polling in an interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg.

He ruled out an early contest. “There is no general election,” he said. “And the thing I would say to you is 20 million people voted for a manifesto. We’re in a parliamentary democracy, so that is what people voted for, and I will honour that manifesto.”

Pressed on whether that was a firm commitment, he said: “Well I’m going to rule it out. There’s no early general election. I don’t think people want it.

“The opinion polls might say some people do, some people don’t. I just think what I most need to do is get Britain focused on getting the country back where it should be, getting it working.”

The findings come less than a week into Burnham’s premiership. He became Labour leader on 17 July following Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation, and was appointed prime minister the following Monday.

Burnham has said he will honour Labour’s 2024 manifesto commitments not to raise VAT, income tax or national insurance. “I stick by the manifesto and the promises that it made,” he said before taking office. “So, let me be absolutely clear about that, but there is some room within that manifesto for movement on tax.”

He has since removed VAT from electricity bills, a measure most businesses do not qualify for.

Reform’s standing in the polls has already prompted calls for closer examination of its economic programme by companies. Liam Byrne, the Labour chairman of the Commons business and trade select committee, said in December that businesses were right to be worried about Reform UK.

“If Reform is set to become the predominant party of the right, then businesses absolutely are going to need to understand where they’re coming from,” Byrne said. “Particularly when the economic evidence says that populist, interventionist administrations are pretty catastrophic for the economy.”

Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice has rejected that characterisation, saying both Labour and the Conservatives had “wrecked the public finances” and that his party would cut spending, borrowing costs and regulation before cutting taxes.

A general election is not due until 2029. Burnham’s first Budget is due in the autumn.

Paul Jones

Harvard alumni and former New York Times journalist. Editor of Business Matters for over 15 years, the UKs largest business magazine. I am also head of Capital Business Media’s automotive division working for clients such as Red Bull Racing, Honda, Aston Martin and Infiniti.

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