"You can clap now," a Downing Street official with a clipboard told staff lining the halls, seconds before the new prime minister walked in. The applause erupted before the famous door opened, so Andy Burnham and his wife were greeted by crowds of clapping staff crammed into the corridor, stretching all the way to the Cabinet Room — left ajar for him to walk straight in and get to work.
Laura Kuenssberg, granted unprecedented behind-the-scenes access, described Burnham as "thoroughly delighted", pride bursting out of his buttoned-up suit — the T-shirt and bomber jacket left behind. His different style was evident: stopping to shake hands, posting on Instagram (rating pub snacks with Chancellor John Healey), and sharing pictures of the family dog, Axel, whom he describes as having "angry little man energy".
“Andy Burnham enters No 10 to clapping staff, posts selfies, and signals higher council tax for London while Angela Rayner returns as Housing Secretary.”
But even as Burnham settles in, he is already facing questions over his tax plans. The former Greater Manchester Mayor has suggested some Londoners should pay more in council tax. And his minister has left the door open to a 10% levy on inheritances to tackle the social care crisis — what some have called a "death tax".
Meanwhile, Angela Rayner is back. Last week she returned to serve as Burnham's Secretary of Housing, Communities and Local Government, sporting a new fringe, square glasses and a bouclé jacket. It is a far cry from last September, when she was forced to resign as deputy prime minister after it was found she had not paid the correct stamp duty on her £800,000 Hove flat. The scandal, which also unearthed details of an NHS settlement for her disabled son, led the prime minister's ethics adviser to rule she had not upheld the highest standards. In her resignation letter to Sir Keir Starmer, she said she "deeply" regretted not getting more advice, adding: "I will continue to serve you, our country and the party and movement I love."
That she now serves under Burnham, who became Labour leader before walking into No 10, marks a remarkable comeback. No 10 staff are already wondering if they will ever stick to a regular schedule, designed with military precision. "If Andy Burnham was able to take the time to stop and speak to everyone in the country, I suspect he probably would," Kuenssberg noted.
The new prime minister's voracious appetite for social media — and the mockery and memes it has already spawned — suggests a leader who wants to bring the public along for the ride. But the tax signals, coupled with Rayner's return, hint at a government that may prove as unorthodox in policy as in style.