Andy Burnham, who has made headlines as a vocal critic of former U.S. President Donald Trump, is set to take on a new role as the United Kingdom’s prime minister. Burnham is emerging as the sole contender to succeed Keir Starmer, the departing leader of the Labour Party.

At 56, Burnham secured a remarkable show of support, garnering nominations from 322 out of 403 Labour Members of Parliament. This overwhelming endorsement surpassed the threshold of 81 needed to officially enter the leadership race, leaving no room for other aspirants.

With his confirmation as Labour leader anticipated on Friday, Burnham is likely to be appointed prime minister by King Charles III come Monday, marking the official handover following Starmer’s resignation.

Under the UK parliamentary framework, a party in power can swap its leader — thereby changing the prime minister — without triggering a general election. The next such election is not scheduled until 2029.

Burnham’s rapid path to Downing Street is drawing criticism from political opponents and foreign policy analysts who say he has not faced the scrutiny that would normally accompany either a competitive party leadership race or a general election campaign.

“Andy Burnham is the least scrutinized incoming U.K. Prime Minister of recent times,” Alan Mendoza, executive director of the London-based Henry Jackson Society, told News Media.

“He has faced neither a general election nor an internal party leadership debate in order to establish his positions for wider consumption,” Mendoza said. “He wasn’t even a candidate at the last general election.”

Burnham did, however, win 54.8% of the vote in June’s Makerfield parliamentary by-election, defeating Reform UK’s candidate and returning to the House of Commons after nearly a decade away. Before returning to Parliament, he had been directly elected mayor of Greater Manchester three times.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage argued in a previous interview with News Media that Burnham should seek a new national mandate.

“The public are tired of the game of musical chairs that’s been taking place in 10 Downing Street over the last decade,” Farage said.

“Mr. Burnham will come in, he will have no mandate,” he added. “I don’t even know what his policies are. Literally, I don’t. So, I think for all of those reasons, there ought to be a general election and a fresh mandate.”

Farage made the comments before resigning his parliamentary seat this month to trigger an Aug. 13 by-election in Clacton, where he plans to run again. Farage said he wanted voters to judge him amid parliamentary scrutiny over allegations involving gifts from wealthy supporters. He has denied wrongdoing. Police are separately investigating donations made to Reform UK, but no arrests have been announced.

Burnham grew up in north-west England between Liverpool and Manchester. The son of a British Telecom engineer and a receptionist, he joined the Labour Party as a teenager, studied at Cambridge University and was first elected to Parliament in 2001, according to The Associated Press.

He rose through Labour’s ranks during the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and served in several senior positions, including as culture secretary and health secretary.

Burnham ran unsuccessfully for the Labour leadership in 2010 and again in 2015. He left Parliament in 2017 after winning election as mayor of Greater Manchester, a regional position he used to build a national political profile.

As mayor, Burnham promoted greater regional control over transportation and public services. His administration brought Greater Manchester’s fragmented bus system under public control as part of the Bee Network, a regional transportation project that became one of his signature achievements.

He also became closely associated with the campaign for accountability over the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster, in which 97 Liverpool soccer fans were killed. Burnham supported victims’ families in their long-running effort to expose police failures and rebut false accusations originally directed at supporters.

What has Andy Burnham said about President Trump?

Burnham has repeatedly criticized President Donald Trump, accusing him of contributing to global instability while warning that Britain risks importing the polarization of American politics. In a 2025 interview with The London Economic, Burnham compared Trump’s return to office to the turmoil caused in Britain by former Prime Minister Liz Truss. 

“The instability that Liz Truss brought to Britain, I think Trump is bringing to the U.S. and the world,” Burnham said in the interview. He also described several of Trump’s decisions, including his approach to the Russia-Ukraine war, as “out of order.”

Burnham’s criticism of Trump dates back to the president’s first election in 2016. After Trump’s victory, Burnham described some of his rhetoric as “deeply troubling” but argued that politicians on the left should examine why working-class voters had turned to him rather than simply blaming the electorate. 

“We have to look closer to home,” Burnham said, according to The Guardian.

His language became sharper following the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. As the attack unfolded, Burnham wrote on X that “any UK politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now.”

More recently, during his Makerfield parliamentary campaign, Burnham warned that Britain was moving toward “the politics of the United States of America,” which he described as “a polarized, poisonous politics where people in communities don’t work together anymore.”

Despite those attacks, Burnham has stopped short of advocating a rupture with Washington. According to Time, he supported Starmer’s effort to maintain a working relationship with Trump, while arguing that Britain must be prepared to disagree with the United States. 

“Obviously, the relationship is important to the U.K., but not to the point where we just go along with anything they say,” Burnham said. 

Trump has already responded dismissively to the likely incoming British leader. Asked in June what he knew about Burnham, Trump said, “I don’t know, I think I see that he was, I guess, the mayor of a town.” Trump added that he had heard Burnham was “extremely liberal” and suggested that he would oppose expanded North Sea oil drilling, before declaring that “the U.K. is dying,” according ton Reuters.

Burnham is generally regarded as being to the left of Starmer. He has said he wants to take what he calls “Manchesterism” nationwide, describing an approach that places “people and place before party” and transfers greater attention and authority from London to regions that have historically received less investment.

He has emphasized infrastructure, housing, transportation and regional economic development, while arguing against what he calls “trickle-down economics.” The Associated Press reported that his priorities have also included vocational education, youth employment, lower energy bills and cheaper rail travel.

Mendoza said that Burnham’s past positions and recent statements suggest he would move the British government further to the left.

“What we can be certain of is that he will be looking to impose a fairly radical left-wing agenda for the country based on his past beliefs and recent pronouncements,” Mendoza said.

“In no particular order, these include introduction of wealth taxes, changes to the electoral system, a vast expansion of social housing and attacks on hitherto allies of the U.K. like Israel.”

Burnham has sought to counter concerns about his limited recent national security experience. 

He has pledged continuity in Britain’s commitments to NATO, its nuclear deterrent, the United States and Ukraine, according to The Associated Press. 

He has also called for Britain to rebuild its military capabilities and domestic defense industry in response to what he described as an increasingly dangerous international environment.

On the war in Gaza, Burnham has criticized Labour’s earlier response and argued that the party was too slow to call for a ceasefire. The Associated Press reported that he has raised the possibility of additional sanctions and trade restrictions involving goods linked to Israeli settlements. Burnham has also condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel.

Burnham has not served in Britain’s national government since 2010 and spent almost a decade outside Parliament, meaning his record is far more developed on domestic and regional policy than on current foreign policy and national security questions.

Burnham would not be required to call an immediate general election. Labour won a large parliamentary majority under Starmer in July 2024, allowing the party to remain in power until 2029 unless Burnham decides to seek an earlier mandate.

Mendoza predicted that Burnham could attempt to capitalize on the momentum surrounding his arrival at Downing Street.

“As he is never likelier to be more popular than on day one of his premiership, we should also be on the watch for his calling of an early general election in order to capitalize on this unique moment,” Mendoza said.

Burnham would inherit an economy facing weak growth, pressure on public finances, strained health and welfare services and continuing concern over the cost of living.

He would also become Britain’s seventh prime minister in just over a decade, reflecting the rapid political turnover at Downing Street since the country’s 2016 vote to leave the European Union.

In the wake of England’s dramatic World Cup semi-final loss, star player Marc Guehi has voiced his frustration over the team’s overly cautious strategy. The spotlight is now on head coach Thomas Tuchel, whose tactical substitutions during the match have come under heavy scrutiny.

The match saw Anthony Gordon break the deadlock with a goal in the 55th minute, after England endured a punishing first half. Argentina employed a physical game, relentlessly targeting midfielders like Jude Bellingham and Elliot Anderson with fouls.

Despite having more than 20 minutes plus injury time to play, Tuchel opted for a series of defensive changes. This move limited England’s ability to build on their lead and put further pressure on their opponents.

The decision proved costly, as Enzo Fernandez netted an equalizer in the 85th minute. To compound England’s woes, Lautaro Martinez dealt the final blow with a header during injury time, clinching the victory for Argentina.

While Tuchel faces widespread criticism from outside the team, Guehi has openly questioned England’s game plan. He suggested that the tactics didn’t match the magnitude of the occasion, hinting at a mismatch between strategy and execution.

‘Once we went 1-0 up, we seemed to just try and hold on, which at this level is just not enough, so I’m gutted,’ the Manchester City defender told BBC Sport after the final whistle. 

‘We should have carried on. We should have carried on pushing. It kind of felt like we scored and the mentality was, go back, defend.’ 

Tuchel later threw on Marcus Rashford and Ivan Toney as the game ticked into added time, but it was too little, too late, for England to force extra time and seek a potential winner. 

When asked whether he thought that this was the squad that could finally win England silverware, Guehi continued to cut a deflated figure. 

‘I don’t know. I don’t know,’ he said. ‘It’s hard to think about the future right now. 

‘At the moment, it’s just disappointment. That’s all.’ 

Tuchel defended his decision-making in the aftermath of his defeat, suggesting that his critics would have had a different view with an alternative outcome. 

‘If it doesn’t go well, it’s easy to say that it was wrong,’ Tuchel told the BBC – and then suggested England were on the back foot before his changes.

‘We just tried to help the players. We conceded straight away. We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were far too open.

‘Straight after our goal, without a substitution we conceded way too many crosses and chances. We tried to help but the responsibility was on the coach.’

Between Gordon’s opener and Enzo Fernandez’s leveller, England had just 12 per cent of possession.

‘We couldn’t get out,’ Tuchel said. ‘Of course we wanted to go for the second goal but I didn’t feel an offensive substitution would help.

‘We stayed in our 4-4-2 but we became passive, couldn’t win any balls or keep the ball. It wasn’t a structure problem.

‘We changed nothing after the goal but the match changed completely. I understand these discussions are out there and other coaches know it better after the game.’

Among those to hit out at Tuchel were Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney, who claimed that his tactics had ‘cost’ England their meeting with Spain in New York. 

World Cup-winning goalkeeper with Spain Iker Casillas described his coaching as ‘cowardly’, while Chris Sutton was unafraid to speak out, dubbing it a ‘coaching catastrophe’ from the former Chelsea manager. 

England might have however considered themselves unlucky in the first-half after a number of rough Argentine challenges went unpunished. 

In the third minute of the match, Enzo Fernandez ploughed into a heavy challenge on Anderson which left the England player clutching the back of his neck.

Anderson, who was repeatedly targeted throughout an attritional first 45 minutes, took a minute or two to haul himself off the turf as England and Argentina players came together in an early showing of the bitter rivalry between the two teams. 

Referee Ismail Elfath battled to separate the sets of players, but did not hold up a card of either colour to punish Fernandez. 

An extended replay for television audiences however shows Fernandez barrelling into Anderson with little thought for the ball at his feet, and appearing to chop him in the neck with his elbow. 

Arguably an outright red, Fernandez might have at least seen a yellow card for his clumsy play – with the Chelsea star then dodging a second punishment minutes later for skittling an on-rushing Jude Bellingham yards from the Argentina penalty area. 

It was instead Anderson himself who received the first yellow card of the match, the midfielder lashing out at Lionel Messi after suffering persistent tackles. 

Some England fans watching from home also claimed that Martinez’s winner should not have stood, with Lionel Messi appearing to foul Djed Spence in the build-up. 

After Alexis Mac Allister hit the post for the second time, the ball cannoned back out on England’s left-hand side, leading to a foot race between Spence and Messi in the penalty area. 

Spence beat Messi to the ball but appeared to be caught by Messi in the process.

Immediately the full back spun around in some discomfort but the referee waved play on – and just seconds later England were punished as Messi crossed to an unmarked Martinez to score.

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