Andy Burnham Becomes Britain’s 59th Prime Minister

After Labour leader Keir Starmer resigned following two years in office, Andy Burnham—formerly mayor of Greater Manchester—won a special election in the Manchester-area constituency of Makerfield and was the sole candidate in Labour’s leadership contest. On 1 May 2024 he is set to assume the premiership, entering No. 10 Downing Street with limited experience in foreign affairs and a reputation built on regional governance.

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Burnham entered Parliament for Leigh in 2001 and served in Tony Blair’s and Gordon Brown’s governments as chief secretary to the Treasury, culture secretary and health secretary (2007-2010). After Labour’s 2010 defeat he ran unsuccessfully for party leadership twice, left Parliament in 2017, and was elected mayor of Greater Manchester. As mayor he pursued a “Manchesterism” agenda—combining business-friendly socialism with public-private investment in transport, housing and infrastructure—while bringing the city’s transport system under public control and championing regional development.

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Burnham has pledged “a new politics based on unity and hope” and an “economy that works for everybody,” emphasizing greater powers for regional leaders and proposing to locate part of the prime minister’s office in Manchester as a “No. 10 North.” He stresses fairness, poverty reduction and national cohesion, though he has not detailed funding mechanisms for these initiatives.

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Analysts note that Burnham’s proposals remain vague on financing and that he lacks experience in key foreign-policy arenas such as the Ukraine war and relations with U.S. President Donald Trump. Critics also warn that the economic and public-service challenges that troubled Starmer—sluggish growth, overstretched services and a cost-of-living squeeze—will confront the new premier.

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• “A whole range of people across the Labour movement and in the country have projected onto Andy Burnham their hopes and their fantasies about how the country should be run and what Labour should stand for and what Andy Burnham stands for,” — Joshi Herrmann, founder, The Mill

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• “The way I look at it, it’s his achievement as well,” — Andy Burnham (on his father’s Alzheimer’s)

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• “He needed a lot of persuading to apply because he felt that as a working-class boy, going off to Cambridge wasn’t for him,” — Stephen Harrington, former English teacher

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• “Everybody thinks Andy’s this nice, cheeky-chappy guy. But trust me, when he wants something ... he tends to get it.” — Sacha Lord, Manchester music entrepreneur

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• “Now he says he will deliver “a new politics based on unity and hope” and “an economy that works for everybody,” no matter where they live.” — Andy Burnham (leadership statement)

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