The Conservatives have accused Labour of “running scared” after ministers scrapped a planned opposition debate that could have forced Andy Burnham to face the House of Commons on his first day as prime minister.
Burnham, the former Greater Manchester mayor who won the Makerfield by-election last month, is set to become Labour leader on Friday after being nominated by 349 MPs – a coronation with no contest. He will then replace Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister on Monday, three days after Parliament begins its six-week summer recess on Thursday.
“Labour blocked a Tory bid to delay recess so Andy Burnham would face MPs on his first day as PM.”
The Tories had intended to use their scheduled opposition day debate on Wednesday to table a motion calling for the Commons to sit next week, so Burnham could take questions about his plans for office. But the government replaced that debate with a general discussion on the escalating crisis in the Middle East – a move described by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch as “unprecedented”.
“Labour are running scared because they know the honeymoon will be over the minute he [Burnham] has to tell us his plans,” Badenoch posted on X.
Shadow Commons leader Jesse Norman went further, telling MPs on Tuesday that the decision was “a total humiliation and embarrassment for the government”. He said the public would conclude that Burnham is “a man who is frit, running scared of public scrutiny before he can even take office”.
“The government has a majority of more than 150 and it could not trust its MPs to vote the right way on that motion, and it could not bear the idea of a new prime minister facing any scrutiny before September,” Norman said. He added: “A prime minister … who has been chosen by a coronation not a contest, with no known platform, almost no known policies, and no idea of his priorities or indeed his cabinet team.”
Commons leader Sir Alan Campbell defended the change of business, telling the House he had not seen “the words of the motion” the Tories intended to put to a vote, and it had not yet been tabled. “I do appreciate the frustration of members when business is changed at short notice and debates are postponed,” he said. “But members will appreciate the importance of the House being able to discuss the escalating and fast-moving situation in the Middle East before the recess.”
Campbell accused the Tories of playing “some weird political game while the Middle East is on the brink of conflagration”.
A Conservative source said the government knew the opposition intended to force a vote on delaying recess so that Burnham could be scrutinised. Under parliamentary rules, Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle can recall Parliament during recess if asked by the government, but there is no constitutional requirement for a prime minister to appear before MPs immediately after being appointed by the monarch.
Burnham has so far avoided making any statements in the Commons since his by-election victory, and his plans for office remain largely unknown – leaving the question of when he will finally face the chamber hanging over his first week in power.
