Andy Burnham is the new prime minister of the UK after Sir Keir Starmer delivered his final address and tendered his resignation to the king.
Britain’s new prime minister Andy Burnham has vowed to “make politics work better” after he formally accepted the top job following a meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace on Monday.
Greeted by cheers and applause as he arrived at Number 10 Downing Street to make his maiden speech, Mr Burnham said he was “acutely conscious that I am the sixth person in the last ten years to walk up this street, the seventh prime minister since 2016.”
Describing the moment as an opportunity for reflection, he said his generation of politicians needed to raise their game.
“Britain needs to show the world that we can regain our stability again,” he said.
“I know people at home are fed up with politics. I hear you, and I want to be honest with you,” he continued, “We have not been good enough and we need to be better.”
He described the moment as a circuit breaker for Britain and vowed to bring back hope.
Earlier, the Palace issued a formal notice saying Mr Burnham, 56, had met with the king and was requested to form a new administration.
“Andrew Burnham MP accepted The King’s offer and kissed hands upon his appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury,” the notice said.
Mr Burnham is the UK’s seventh prime minister in ten years - and the fifth in the last four years - after Borris Johnson left office in September 2022.
Mr Johnson was briefly followed by Liz Truss, who only lasted 49 days in the role, before Rishi Sunak took over in October 2022. He was defeated by Mr Starmer in a landslide election in 2024.
Earlier on Monday, Mr Burnham’s predecessor Sir Keir Starmer described his time as the UK’s prime minister as the “privedge of his life” as he delivered his final address before formally tendering his resignation.
Speaking outside of No. 10 for the last time, Mr Starmer said he was leaving with “good grace and a smile” and gave Mr Burnham his full support.
In the brief address, he recounted some of his achievements as PM, saying the country is now “stronger and fairer” than it was when he entered office two years ago.
He also said it was vital to “remember the greatness of the Britain around us” and that the country can be “changed for the better” if it doesn’t succumb to division.
He then left No. 10 to travel to Buckingham Palace to meet with King Charles to formally tender his resignation. A photo released by the Palace showed Mr Starmer shaking hands with the king in the Chinese dining room.
Mr Burnham arrived at Buckingham Palace a short while later where he also had an audience with the king and was asked to form the next government. He spent 35 minutes inside the palace, just a little longer than the time Mr Starmer spent with the king.
Mr Starmer served just two years in the top job after leading Labour to power in a landslide election victory after 14 years of Conservative rule.
He was the latest in a string of short-lived prime ministers who have entered and exited office during a decade of political turmoil since the Brexit vote.
A new era of politics
Laying out his priorities as prime minister, Mr Burnham on Monday pledged to deliver cost of living help and to “end rough sleeping”.
He also said he wanted to help young people into work through education and by bolstering mental health services, and promised to build more council homes.
In an interview with The Times published late Sunday, Mr Burnham set out his ambition for change, saying he wanted to draw a line under a decade of chaos in UK politics.
“What we’ve been doing hasn’t been working. That’s the way I see it,” he said.
“I am going to try and do things in a different way.”
An announcement on his senior cabinet appointments is also expected on Monday.
Nicknamed the “King of the North”, Mr Burnham was parachuted in by the Labour Party, after Mr Starmer resigned last month, with MPs viewing him as the party’s best chance of reining in Nigel Farage’s anti-immigration Reform UK party.
- with AFP
