With Sir Keir Starmer resigning, Andy Burnham, the newly elected Makerfield MP, is almost certain to be the next UK prime minister. And it is expected he will want a new chancellor to replace Rachel Reeves. Among those believed to be in the running, Ed Miliband has emerged as the bookmakers' strong favourite for the number two job in British politics, politically closer to Burnham than other rivals.
Paul Johnson, former director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, sees this closeness as a positive. "You really don't want people in Number 10 and Number 11 having very different views," he says. However, opinions differ on whether Miliband would receive the backing of financial markets. Nick Macpherson, former permanent secretary at the Treasury, told the Financial Times: "The key to gaining the confidence of the markets is to articulate, implement and deliver a coherent strategy. Miliband is one of the few cabinet members with the intellect, experience, and authority to do that."
“Ed Miliband is bookmakers' favourite for chancellor after Keir Starmer's resignation, with Andy Burnham set to be PM.”
Yet others see Miliband as an inflation risk, blaming his net-zero drive as energy secretary for high UK energy prices. Analysts say that reputation, whether accurate or not, could affect bond market reactions. Lord Richard Walker, Iceland boss and government cost-of-living tsar, warned Miliband would be "a disaster," saying he had been "far too ideological" on climate change and his policies were "putting unfair pressure on households... in a very regressive way." Sharon Graham, head of the Unite union, called Miliband a "noose around the neck" of job creation due to his opposition to new North Sea oil and gas drilling. The TSSA union, however, backs him, saying he would take a "different approach" to "delivering an economy that works for everyone."
Wes Streeting, a former Labour leadership contender, was the early favourite, with suggestions he could be awarded the job for backing Burnham and withdrawing his own ambitions. The next chancellor faces high debt, low growth, welfare reform, defence spending, and the economic fallout from the US-Israel war with Iran.