While the Prime Minister attempts to split his time between London and Manchester, he is neglecting the Chequers country estate so beloved by his predecessors.

On Saturday night, the Tories said that under the terms of the statute that grants prime ministers the use of the grace-and-favour home in Buckinghamshire, Andy Burnham risked losing his access to the 16th-century mansion if he effectively mothballed it.

This was denied by No 10, which said Mr Burnham had made use of the property on occasion. A Government source said: 'He is barely ever there, because he likes to spend weekends at home in Manchester.

'But he is thinking of holding a New Year's Eve party there.'

The 1,000-acre estate has been in public hands since 1917, when its then owners donated it to the British government.

It has been the official country residence of the Prime Minister since 1921, when David Lloyd George moved in.

The Chequers Estate Act says that 'if any Prime Minister shall decline to avail himself of the rights hereby conferred upon him' then the house passes instead to the Chancellor, the Foreign Secretary or even the US Ambassador. 

According to the Act 'the inducement to spend two days a week in the high and pure air of the Chiltern hills and woods will, it is hoped, benefit the nation as well as its chosen leaders... The main features of this scheme are therefore designed not merely to make Chequers available as the official country residence of the Prime Minister of the day, but to tempt him to visit it regularly.'

Mike Wood MP, Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, said: 'It seems our city-obsessed Prime Minister is determined to snub our nation's counties.

'For the city-bred man especially, contact with rural life was intended to restore a sense of proportion between town and country.'