The new prime minister’s mother, Eileen Burnham, clung to her son outside the black door of Number 10, hugging him as if the rest of the world did not exist. But one figure was conspicuously absent from the most important moment of Andy Burnham’s life: his father Roy, who has dementia. “He won’t know that his son has become prime minister,” Burnham has said. “It’s a family achievement … although he doesn’t know it, it still makes me feel that we’ve kind of done something together.”
Inside Downing Street, however, Burnham wasted no time in making his mark, jettisoning several of predecessor Sir Keir Starmer’s allies and appointing John Healey as his chancellor. The move came as a surprise after weeks of speculation that home secretary Shabana Mahmood – who had been the subject of “live discussions” for the Treasury role – would be Burnham’s neighbour in Number 11. Instead, Mahmood remains at the Home Office, while Ed Miliband, long tipped for the chancellorship, has been named foreign secretary.
“Andy Burnham appoints John Healey as chancellor, sacks Rachel Reeves, and reshuffles cabinet as he becomes PM.”
The reshuffle signals a clear break from the Starmer era. Rachel Reeves and David Lammy are among the senior ministers leaving government. In her resignation statement, Reeves wrote: “It has been the privilege of my life to serve as the chancellor of the exchequer. The economy today is stronger, fairer and more resilient because of the choices we have taken as a Labour government over the past two years.” Allies said she was offered a “big job” but declined. Business secretary Peter Kyle and housing secretary Steve Reed resigned earlier.
Louise Haigh, who managed Burnham’s Makerfield campaign, becomes first secretary of state, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and minister for the cabinet office. Yvette Cooper moves to health, while Pat McFadden remains work and pensions secretary. Former Wales minister Jo Stevens and science minister Liz Kendall get no roles.
Burnham’s wife, Marie-France van Heel – who calls herself “Frankie” – was notably absent from the stage for his victory speech as Labour leader, standing back in Makerfield behind oversized sunglasses. A highly intelligent, stylish woman who speaks three languages, she has always kept her distance from his political career. Her sister died of breast cancer at 39, and she underwent a double mastectomy in 2010 after a genetic test showed risk. The family’s NHS experiences have shaped Burnham’s vision for a National Care Service, as did his grandmother’s death after her life savings were spent on care. “If you get elected, bloody well do something,” his mother told him.
Delivering his inaugural speech, Burnham promised “the most significant change moment in our politics for 40 years”. Healey inherits a daunting in-tray: high debt, low growth, welfare reform, defence spending and the economic fallout from the US-Israel war with Iran. Markets had rallied on reports of Mahmood as chancellor, but the choice of Healey – a former Treasury adviser – leaves investors guessing whether the new government will be judged as sound or as an inflation risk.