In a striking moment of political synchronicity, just as Sir Keir Starmer stood outside Number 10 to announce his resignation, Andy Burnham was also saying goodbye. Inside the Tootal Buildings in central Manchester, the newly elected MP for Makerfield addressed staff at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority for what many in the room suspected would be the last time. For nine years, Burnham has defined himself in opposition to Westminster. Now, with Starmer's resignation triggering a potential Labour leadership contest, or a coronation, Westminster is calling him back.
Symbolic Timing
The timing could hardly have been more symbolic. As Starmer spoke of an "orderly handover of power" in Downing Street, to the soundtrack of Steve Bray blasting out ‘Ode To Joy’, Burnham was reflecting on almost a decade spent trying to prove that power does not need to reside exclusively in London. He spoke about the Manchester Arena attack, the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis and the long campaign to bring buses back under public control. He later posted on X that it was ‘SO hard to say goodbye’.
"The next ten years must be about making sure that places in Greater Manchester like Makerfield don't feel left behind and in decline," he told staff in an emotional speech. The message was clear: what has been built in Greater Manchester, he believes, can be scaled up nationally. "The work achieved in Greater Manchester is going to change the country," he said. For those who have watched Burnham's journey since he left Westminster after losing the Labour leadership contest in 2015, it felt like the closing of a circle.
Mobbed by Crowds
The political drama that has consumed the country for weeks arrived on the streets of Manchester in the form of camera crews, photographers and journalists jostling for position outside the mayor's former headquarters. Soon after, Burnham was whisked to Manchester Piccadilly. There, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt rather than a suit, he walked through the station flanked by police officers as commuters stopped, stared and took photographs. Burnham was effectively mobbed by crowds.
As a Manchester Evening News reporter asked him if he would be Prime Minister by July, he smiled and deflected: "Getting sworn in as MP for Makerfield is the most important thing today." Yet the timeline accelerated rapidly. Barely an hour after arriving in London and formally declaring his candidacy, his path to the top cleared overnight. Wes Streeting, the former health secretary and the only other heavyweight likely to drag the party into a fractious leadership wrangle, announced he would not run. In stepping aside, a Burnham coronation became the most likely option. Streeting said he had spoken with Burnham "at length" and concluded he could "win the fight of our lives against the forces of nationalism".
Path to Premiership
If no rival can secure the support of 81 Labour MPs by July 16, Burnham could become Labour leader and prime minister within weeks. In a statement following Starmer's resignation, he thanked the outgoing prime minister for his service and promised an "orderly and responsible" transition. "The country expects stability, seriousness and a continued focus on the issues that matter most and that is what it will get," he said.
While a smooth transition is being projected publicly, many questions hang over his expected premiership. Unlike past contenders who arrived in Downing Street without a clear track record, Burnham arrives in Westminster with one of the most extensive governing records of any modern leadership contender. He has overseen the franchising of the region's bus network, launched the Bee Network transport system, expanded social housing programmes and championed greater devolution of power away from Whitehall.
Central Argument: Devolution
His central political argument has remained remarkably consistent: Britain is too centralised, unequal, and too reliant on decisions made in Westminster. Burnham believes economic renewal should start outside London, with more powers over transport, housing, skills and public services handed directly to mayors and local leaders. That philosophy has informed much of his rhetoric during the Makerfield campaign, where he repeatedly spoke about rebuilding trust in places that feel "left behind and in decline".
On the economic front, Burnham has sought to reassure financial markets by committing to Labour's existing fiscal rules and ruling out unfunded spending commitments. However, he has also argued that the government should play a more active role in shaping markets, lowering household bills and accelerating investment in infrastructure.
Key Policies
Among the policies closely associated with him are greater public control over transport, reform of property taxes, stronger protections for renters and an industrial strategy focused on rebalancing economic growth towards the North and Midlands. He has also made clear that one of his first priorities in Westminster would be securing the passage of Hillsborough Law, a cause he has championed for more than a decade.
However, executing this strategy requires time that the resignation timetable Keir Starmer has outlined might not provide. As the Manchester Evening News reported yesterday, the Burnham camp had a preference for an orderly transition in September. They wanted to work with civil servants and MPs on preparing for government. That is now unlikely to happen. Starmer seemed to be suggesting with the choice of dates that he was willing to wait until September but not for a coronation. If he was to hang around that long then there would need to be a proper contest.
Mixed Feelings in Labour
Not everyone in the Parliamentary Labour Party will have been pleased at the way in which Burnham and his team have manoeuvred Starmer into a corner. If Labour is to avoid another fractious few years, Burnham will need to convince MPs that he was right to take the action he did when he did. Feelings are mixed amongst Labour sources, with one reportedly describing Burnham as a ‘snivelling little rat’. As Burnham arrived in Westminster in a black cab to be sworn in, someone was repeatedly shouting 'traitor' in the background. In the House of Commons one wit remarked 'Rome is saved!'.
All of which indicates it may not be a smooth ride. If Labour and Burnham are to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, then the King of the North will need to use every ounce of his much-touted charm to win over his critics. Otherwise, the manner in which he has come to Westminster may set the tone for everything else that follows.
