What a shameless stitch–up! Burnham WILL be PM after 322 Labour MPs back him – but voters still know almost nothing of what he stands for
The ‘coronation’ of Andy Burnham was almost complete last night as hundreds of Labour MPs scrambled to nominate their new ‘king’.
Despite not knowing what he will do in power, backbenchers and ministers stampeded to pledge their loyalty to the so-called ‘King of the North’ following his successful coup against Sir Keir Starmer.
Nominations for a new Labour leader do not close until next Thursday. But the ‘contest’ was all but over after 322 of Labour’s 403 MPs took the first opportunity to nominate Mr Burnham yesterday.
It means the man dubbed ‘The ‘Messiah’ without a mandate’ is virtually certain to become Britain’s next Prime Minister on July 20 – despite having revealed almost nothing about his plans for the country.
The clamour to nominate him means he will not even face the scrutiny of a Labour leadership contest, with a hustings next week set to be a one-man affair.
Virtually the entire Cabinet, including Chancellor Rachel Reeves, joined the rush to back him as they try to catch his eye while he decides who will form his new top team. Ministers have even taken to referring to him privately as ‘the King’.
However, his right-hand woman, Louise Haigh, revealed that he and his supporters had been plotting to oust Sir Keir for at least a year. Claims of him acting to undermine a Labour Government just months after the party’s landslide win drew a backlash from some.
Despite the wave of support from MPs, the former Cabinet minister has almost no mandate from the public. He did not stand on Labour’s election-winning mandate in 2024 and the 25,000 voters who backed him in the Makerfield by-election represent just 0.05 per cent of the British electorate.
Despite not knowing what he will do in power, backbenchers and ministers stampeded to pledge their loyalty to the so-called ‘King of the North’ – pictured on Thursday
Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake (pictured/file image) said it was ‘madness’ for Labour MPs to commit the country to a huge leap in the dark
Starmer – pictured announcing his resignation
Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake said it was ‘madness’ for Labour MPs to commit the country to a huge leap in the dark. Mr Burnham has said almost nothing since his victory in last month’s by-election win, delivering just one set-piece speech in that time. He has issued no manifesto, held no Press conferences and conducted no TV or newspaper interviews.
He has hinted that he will raise taxes – particularly on middle-class families in the South – to fund a spree in the North. He has also backed state control of energy and water utilities. But he has given no detail of how his plan might work.
Mr Hollinrake said: ‘Just like Keir Starmer before him, Andy Burnham has no plan and no policies for this country. Beyond a handful of policy-light newspaper columns and a proposal to move civil servants to Manchester, no one actually knows what our next prime minister would do with the levers of power.
‘It is madness that Labour MPs are making the same mistake again.
‘It doesn’t matter whether it is Starmer or Burnham in No 10. The problem is the Labour Party, and until they stop calling for higher taxes to fund more welfare handouts, nothing is going to change.’
Reform UK’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick said: ‘Andy Burnham doesn’t have a plan to turn the country around so he’s improvising. It won’t be long before he’s found out and Labour MPs develop buyer’s remorse. If Andy Burnham wants to raise taxes, as he and others have suggested, he should call a general election and see what the public think.’
MPs queued outside the offices of the Parliamentary Labour Party in the Commons to join the rush to support the new leader.
Many issued sycophantic messages of support, with some even posting pictures on social media of their nomination papers.
Only 81 Labour MPs failed to back him on the opening day of nominations. He needs just one more to make it impossible for another candidate to stand. But in reality there is now no chance of a contest. Mr Burnham said last night he was ‘deeply grateful’ for the support of Labour MPs, which ‘reflects a shared belief that Britain needs a new approach to politics’, adding: ‘That is the circuit breaker I am offering – power out of Westminster, an economy rewired for ordinary people, and good growth in every postcode.’
Meanwhile, Ms Haigh told the BBC’s Political Thinking podcast: ‘He has been thinking about this and certainly planning for this… for at least the last year.’
The ex-transport secretary insisted he did have a strategy. Asked about his intentions for his first 100 days in office, she said: ‘Of course there’s a plan, but I’m not going to tell you about it here.’
Confirmation that he and his allies had been operating disloyally during most of Sir Keir’s premiership angered some in the party.
A senior Labour source told HuffPost UK the new leader would rely ‘on the good graces of people who worked extremely hard to make a success of the last Labour government to do so again’.
The source added: ‘Lou Haigh proudly declaring she has been working to undermine that work shames her and weakens Andy.’
