Andy Burnham was officially sworn in as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on Monday, the seventh leader in the last decade. He was elected leader of the Labour Party last week. Burnham, who until recently served as the mayor of Greater Manchester, succeeds Keir Starmer as Prime Minister.
Speaking at the official residence of the Prime Minister at Downing Street at 10 a.m. on Monday, Keir Starmer announced his resignation and the end of his tenure as Prime Minister. He thanked the British people for the opportunity to serve and said he was leaving the post with dignity, a smile, and pride in all that has been achieved. Regarding his successor, he added: “Now I am passing the baton to Andy Burnham. I wish him every success. He has my full support.”
Transfer of power and government formation
After his speech, Starmer went to Buckingham Palace to officially inform King Charles III of his resignation. Burnham then arrived at the palace, where the monarch tasked him with forming a new government. After this, the new Prime Minister was to return to Downing Street to address the press and begin appointing cabinet members.
Starmer announced his intention to leave the post back in June after several months of internal political crisis. Despite leading the Labour Party to a historic majority in the 2024 parliamentary elections, the politician faced criticism from opponents and within his own party due to the lack of rapid changes after 14 years of rule by the Conservative Party. After the local elections in May, in which Labour lost over 1,000 seats in local councils, many party members saw the result as a vote of no confidence in Starmer’s political course and called for his resignation.
Political path and priorities of the new Prime Minister
Burnham was the sole candidate for the party leadership, receiving support from 379 out of 403 Labour MPs in the House of Commons. In total, the lower house of the British Parliament has 650 members. After his election, he stated that his main mission would be to restore hope and overcome decades of economic inequality and declining living standards.
The 56-year-old Burnham was born in Lancashire and began his career as a journalist, later working as a parliamentary research assistant for the team. In 2001, he was elected as a deputy from his hometown of Leigh. Over 16 years, he worked in the cabinets of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. In 2017, the politician left Parliament and became the mayor of Greater Manchester, where he earned the nickname “King of the North” for his fight against excessive centralization of power in London.
The new Prime Minister, who associates himself with the left-centrist wing of the Labour Party and calls himself a socialist, promised to make British politics less toxic and build a new politics that the country needs. “We must acknowledge that this generation of politicians — and I include myself — has failed to change the political culture and the economic model that no longer works effectively enough for ordinary people,” said Burnham.
Source: ABC News
