Andy Burnham has said goodbye to his former colleagues in Manchester before taking the train to London — leaving behind the mayoralty he held for years and heading straight into the race for the highest office in the land.
The former Greater Manchester mayor confirmed his intention to bid for the Labour leadership after Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation, with many Labour MPs already rallying around the new MP for Makerfield. His chances were boosted when his principal rival, former health secretary Wes Streeting, threw his support behind him. Streeting had himself been keen on running for the top job.
“Andy Burnham is poised to become Labour leader and PM after winning the Makerfield by-election and securing key backing.”
Burnham’s first major obstacle was cleared last week when he won the Makerfield by-election, seeing off a challenge from Reform UK, which came second but more than 9,000 votes behind Labour. The result increased Labour’s share of the vote from 45% at the 2024 general election to almost 55%.
The Labour MP, first elected to Parliament in 2001, will be sworn in on Monday afternoon. Now he is expected to deliver a speech on fiscal policy next week to strengthen his economic credentials, as first reported by The Times. He is poised to pledge economic growth and commit to Labour’s budget rules.
Yet the path may not be entirely smooth. Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, is reportedly considering whether to throw his hat into the ring, following reports that Starmer loyalists were encouraging him to stand. Sources close to Jones indicated he was not currently inclined to enter the race, but would seek guarantees on economic policy amid concerns about potential market jitters.
Discussions are also under way regarding a potential reshaped Cabinet, with Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood both mooted as possible candidates to take over from Rachel Reeves as chancellor. Burnham’s allies insisted no positions had been handed out and no agreements struck as of Monday evening.
Meanwhile, former home secretary Alan Johnson, a Labour grandee, warned Burnham against making the same “mistake” as Gordon Brown when he took over from Tony Blair in 2007, calling for a general election to “restore trust”.
Burnham’s return to Westminster comes after a long political journey. Born in Liverpool in 1970, he grew up in Culcheth, Cheshire, the son of a BT engineer and a GP receptionist. Inspired by the BBC drama Boys from the Blackstuff, he joined the Labour Party at 14. He studied English at Cambridge, where he felt like an “imposter”, but found identity in Manchester music. After graduating, he worked as a journalist for trade magazines including Tank World, then as a researcher for the late Tessa Jowell before being elected MP for his hometown of Leigh.
If Burnham is the sole candidate to secure the backing required to stand, he could be installed as prime minister as early as mid-July. Nominations close on July 16, and the appointment could happen considerably sooner than the September 1 deadline set by Starmer, who vowed an “orderly handover of power”. Standing by his record, Starmer pledged to give the next leader “my full and unequivocal support, knowing that they will inherit a Britain that is far stronger and fairer than the one I inherited two years ago.”
For now, Burnham’s focus is on that economy speech — and on winning the backing of enough MPs to turn his third leadership bid into an unopposed march on Downing Street.