Andy Burnham to become Britain’s next prime minister on Monday

Andy Burnham will become Britain’s 59th prime minister on Monday after Keir Starmer resigned last month. Burnham won a special election for the Manchester-area seat of Makerfield last month and was backed by 379 Labour MPs and most trade unions linked to the party earlier this week.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, chair of Labour’s ruling national executive committee, will announce the result at the conference. Burnham will pay tribute to Starmer for winning the 2024 general election and for NHS improvements and investment in public services.

““He’s not scared of locking horns with people. Everybody thinks Andy’s this nice, cheeky-chappy guy. But trust me, when he wants something ... he tends to get it.””

challenges Burnham previously served as mayor of Greater Manchester, where he took a piecemeal public transport system under public control. He will face the same economic and political pressures that confronted Starmer, including a sluggish economy, overstretched public services and a cost-of-living squeeze.

Burnham has little experience of foreign policy issues, from the Ukraine war to dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump.