Andy Burnham

Flickr | European Committee of the Regions

➡️ ANDY BURNHAM - The Next Prime Minister?

Andy Burnham is a prominent British Labour Party politician currently serving as the Mayor of Greater Manchester. He has earned the title "King in the North" for his fierce advocacy of northern English interests, which are often overlooked due to London-centricity.

Burnham is one of the only UK politicians to regularly earn a net-positive favourability rating. As such, he has been tipped as a potential future leader of the Labour Party. The question of Labour leadership returned to the headlines after Keir Starmer's Labour underperformed in the May 2026 local elections.

It has been a tumultuous few years for British politics, with 5 different Prime Ministers since 2019, and deep-rooted dissatisfaction from voters with all parties.

Shortly after the May election results, Burnham announced that he is seeking a return to Westminster by contesting the upcoming Makerfield by-election. This move is widely viewed as a launchpad to challenge current Prime Minister Keir Starmer for the leadership of the Labour Party.

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Political Career

Originally from Liverpool, Burnham grew up in a small village in Cheshire. His interest in politics began in his 20s, when he became a researcher for the late Tessa Jowell, who later served as a minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

He went on to become a special adviser to Culture Secretary Chris Smith and then was elected as the MP for his hometown of Leigh, in Greater Manchester, in 2001. He held this position until 2017. During this time, he also held cabinet positions as the Health Secretary and the Culture Secretary.

After Gordon Brown's resignation as Labour Party leader in 2010 following the general election defeat, Burham began the first of two leadership bids. In 2010, he lost to Ed Miliband, and in his second bid in 2015, Jeremy Corbyn took the top spot.

He went on to serve in Corbyn's shadow cabinet as the shadow home secretary. He stood down in 2017 to run to be the first mayor of Greater Manchester. This was a new position created to shift political power from London directly to the region, giving much more local control over important decisions.

Burnham won with more than 60% of the vote and has since secured consecutive landslide victories in 2021 and 2024.

Kaythehistorian | CC BY 4.0

What Does Burnham Stand For?

As mayor, Burnham has received praise for transforming the region's transport system. Outside of London, Manchester was the first area to bring the bus service back under public control.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, he earned himself the nickname King of the North for standing up to the Conservative government for treating the north with contempt over lockdown restrictions.

Although he did not meet his targets, he also put considerable effort into tackling the widespread issue of homelessness. Since he took on the role of mayor, he managed to reduce the prevalence of rough sleeping every year until 2021. After lockdown restrictions were relaxed, the problem soared again under hostile governmental policies on housing benefits, asylum seekers, and rent freezes.

Burnham is a staunch believer in devolving power from Westminster, introducing proportional representation, and has demonstrated a desire to renationalise energy, water, and rail. He has expressed support for raising taxes for the rich and introducing levies on assets and wealth.

Steven's Transport Photos | CC BY 2.0

His political positions have been criticised for resembling a shapeshifter, changing with the winds to give him the greatest chance of success. This has left many wondering whether his time as mayor in a northern city has prepared him to shape national policy.

He supports decarbonisation and sees it as an economic opportunity rather than a burden. He plans to use green initiatives to drive reindustrialisation, create jobs, and improve infrastructure.

On immigration, he aligns closely with the current Labour policy of a more restrictive and controlled approach.

His stance on the NHS dates back to his time as Health Secretary. He has long been a champion of a well-funded, free, and fully integrated NHS. He supports improved social care and the devolution of NHS budgets to local authorities.

He has called for stricter regulation of Big Tech and artificial intelligence. In education, he seeks to dismantle ‘academic snobbery’ by creating technical education pathways outside universities that equip students with job-ready skills equal to those of degrees.

Burnham’s approach to foreign policy and war has evolved significantly from his early days, when he voted in favour of military intervention, to his current advocacy of diplomatic restraint, human rights, and early ceasefires. Regarding Gaza, he was one of the earliest high-profile Labour figures to break free from their initial stance. He called for a ceasefire by all sides, supports a two-state solution, and advocates adequate humanitarian aid.

During the Brexit referendum, he was a staunch Remain supporter. To this day, he has expressed a desire for the UK to rejoin the European Union.

Flickr | RachelH_

Path Back to Westminster & a Labour Leadership Contest

The resignation of MP Josh Simons has triggered a by-election in the parliamentary constituency of Makerfield, home to about 76,000 voters in the suburbs of Wigan and nearby towns and villages. This move was made specifically to create a vacancy for Burnham, stating it was ‘too big an opportunity to miss.’

The spotlight falls yet again on Greater Manchester as the result could pave the way for a new Prime Minister.

Makerfield has been a safe Labour seat since its creation in the 1980s, but in the local elections, Reform UK took the seat. The rise of their popularity across the country has become one of the main arguments for Keir Starmer to stand down.

Burnham, however, does not have a way to challenge him unless he is an MP, which is why this Makerfield election is so important. He faces a huge challenge from Reform, which has vowed to throw everything at the contest.

The election is scheduled for June 18th, 2026.

We are still in the early stages of the campaign, but the first poll has revealed that Burnham leads on 43% with Reform's Robert Kenyon closely behind on 40%. If Burnham wins, he can begin building his challenge for the Labour leadership.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is experiencing historically low approval ratings. With a net favourability of roughly -46%, 70% of the British public view him unfavourably. Within the party, a significant number of Labour MPs agree.

Burnham faces stiff competition from the recently resigned Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, and former deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner. Burnham, however, is currently outpolling both his rivals among Labour members and has rare net approval ratings with the general public.

Stay tuned for further updates as events progress.

Author: Rachael Mellor, 02.06.26 licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

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