Andy Burnham will become prime minister today, pledging to restore confidence in government and urging Britain to be honest about the challenges it faces. The Labour leader is expected to appoint his cabinet on Monday afternoon after a visit to Buckingham Palace to accept the role from King Charles.
Sir Keir Starmer will give a final statement in Downing Street at around 11.15am before his own palace visit. Burnham is expected to arrive outside Number 10 just before 1pm, where he will address the nation.
“Andy Burnham becomes PM, inheriting strong economy but facing prison minister resignation”
Burnham inherits the third-strongest economic backdrop of any prime minister in the past 50 years, according to analysis by Public First and the Prosperity Alliance. Only Tony Blair and Theresa May came to power with the economy in a better state, the study found, measuring first-year forecasts across growth, inflation, unemployment, and borrowing.
The incoming prime minister is expected to launch a policy blitz this week, including scrapping Starmer's controversial digital ID scheme and reportedly opening the door to more oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. US president Donald Trump reacted to those reports over the weekend, saying Burnham will open oil fields “all the way” and that “the people of Aberdeen, in Scotland, are dancing in the streets”.
But Burnham's first day is already marked by a symbolic departure: James Timpson has quit as prisons minister. Lord Timpson, the former chief executive of the Timpson Group, was brought in to radically reform England and Wales' failing prisons system and modernise the estate, but reform ran aground during the Starmer government. There was a huge backlash against the accelerated early release scheme to deal with the overcrowded prison estate, which was at crisis point when Labour took over. Timpson's departure suggests the Burnham government may see prisons as a much lower priority with less desire for real business experience.
As Burnham prepares to address the nation, the question is whether he can deliver on his promise of reflection and resolution — and whether the strong economy he inherits will give him the room to do so.
