Andy Burnham dismantled Richard Tice for comments he made about ‘net stupid zero’, and urged the Reform man to “look into the facts.”
After his first address to the House of Commons as prime minister, Burnham took questions from MPs.
One of those to ask the prime minister about his plans for the country was Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice.
Addressing Burnham’s comments about the cost of living in the country, Tice said this was driven by rising energy prices for Brits, which he claimed was a result of “the rush towards net stupid zero and the increase in renewables.”
He asked when Burnham would “do the right thing and approve the licences at Rosebank and Jackdaw and elsewhere in the North Sea.”
READ NEXT: Andy Burnham takes swipe at Liz Truss in first Commons speech as PM
In response, Burnham asked whether Tice had been “listening a moment ago when I was talking about how renewables can bring down the cost of living.”
The Labour leader pointed out how in Manchester, it was much cheaper to charge a bus with electric charge than it was to fill its tank with diesel.
Burnham said Tice needs to “look into the facts a little bit more before he makes statements like that in this house.”
He continued: “Solar panels on people’s homes can bring down the cost of their energy.
“And yes, we need to be pragmatic, we still need to rely on oil and gas for some years to come.
“The mistake he is making is saying it’s got to be one or the other for political purposes. The truth is it’s going to have to be both.”