Andy Burnham’s team is already drawing up plans for his first 100 days in Downing Street — despite the Greater Manchester Mayor not yet holding a seat in Parliament.
According to Politico, three insiders who have worked with Mr Burnham confirmed the plans are in their early stages, with proposals expected to cover social care reform and measures to lower energy costs for UK households. The ambition of the exercise reflects the confidence among his allies that he will become the next Labour leader — and ultimately Prime Minister.
The speed of that thinking has been accelerated by events. Labour’s local election losses on 7 May destabilised Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership more rapidly than many anticipated, thrusting the 56-year-old mayor into pole position to succeed him. Labour formally selected Mr Burnham on Tuesday as its candidate for a parliamentary by-election in Makerfield, a collection of towns and villages near Wigan in the north west of England, with the contest expected to take place on 18 June, though that date is yet to be confirmed.
Should he win the seat and become an MP, the former Health Secretary under Gordon Brown would be eligible to trigger a formal leadership challenge — one that polling suggests he would win decisively. A YouGov survey found Mr Burnham would secure 59 per cent of the Labour membership vote against 37 per cent for Sir Keir Starmer in a straight contest. He would also comfortably defeat former Health Secretary Wes Streeting, winning 80 per cent to Mr Streeting’s 10 per cent.
Without explicitly calling for the Prime Minister to stand aside, Mr Burnham used a speech on Monday to signal the direction of travel. “A vote for me will be a vote to change Labour,” he said, “because Labour needs to change if we’re to regain people’s trust.” He has outlined a series of policy positions, including bringing privatised energy and water companies back under public control, reclaiming state oversight of housing and reforming technical education.
On social care — likely to be a centrepiece of any leadership platform — sources told Politico that his allies are frustrated by the pace of existing government work and believe the issue is too pressing to wait for the outcome of Baroness Casey’s review, which is not due to report until 2028.
However, the process of preparing for a potential national role has also required his team to confront some political complications. Staff are said to be revisiting historical comments made by Mr Burnham, including remarks he made four years ago in which he described the view that female-only toilets should be exclusive to biological women as a “minority view.” His team has also ruled out altering existing fiscal rules, despite him previously suggesting he could do so to fund increased defence spending. On Brexit, Mr Burnham has pledged not to “re-run” the debate, notwithstanding earlier comments in which he expressed a desire to see the United Kingdom rejoin the European Union during his lifetime.
One source close to Mr Burnham acknowledged there were concerns that not enough work had yet been done at government-policy level, though they believed there remained time to develop something more comprehensive. The stakes, they suggested, could hardly be higher. “If you don’t get this right,” the source warned, “you end up with Nigel Farage as Prime Minister.”
Mr Burnham’s allies are simultaneously managing his by-election campaign while laying the groundwork for a potential national leadership bid. Reform UK has confirmed local plumber Robert Kenyon as its candidate for Makerfield. Businesswoman Rebecca Shepherd will stand for Restore Britain, having been the first candidate officially announced in the contest. The Official Monster Raving Loony Party’s leader and co-founder, Alan “Howlin” Laud Hope, has also confirmed he will stand, with the party describing him as their “glorious leader” in a statement. Further candidates are expected to be announced in the coming days.
