Keir Starmer’s dramatic resignation as UK prime minister, amid an internal Labour rebellion, has opened the door for former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham to move into Downing Street. Burnham, 56, has recently won a landslide in a special parliamentary election, and in Britain’s political circles he is now seen as likely to take over the party and the country without a serious internal contest, a process described as a coronation. If that happens, he would become the seventh British prime minister in just a decade.
His expected rise is drawing close attention in Israel because of the gradual shift in his views over time. In the previous decade, Burnham was regarded as a strong supporter of Israel, opposed the Labour Party’s boycott movement, described Israel as a democracy with a long history of protecting minorities and advancing civil rights, and said during the 2015 Labour leadership race that Israel would be his first official overseas visit. In recent years, however, he has taken a much harsher line. Weeks after Hamas’s October 7 attack and the start of the war, he was among the senior figures calling for a halt to the fighting, even though Starmer initially resisted such a call.
Burnham also pressed for immediate recognition of a Palestinian state, saying it was not a favor to be granted but a right that should be acknowledged, before the current government did the same. He has stopped short of accusing Israel of genocide, saying, “I cannot judge things of such magnitude from here as a mayor,” but added that he was concerned by the disproportionate destruction and said there must be a full process of investigation and accountability. Far-left critics in Britain have attacked him for belonging to Friends of Israel, while others accuse him of being a political chameleon who tailors his message to suit the audience.
Politically, Burnham is seen as a soft-left Labour figure with a direct, upbeat northern style that contrasts sharply with his predecessor. Former Blair aide John McTernan called him “optimistic and happy” and said he seems to enjoy being a politician. Burnham’s popularity grew after he became mayor of Greater Manchester in 2017, when he earned the nickname “King of the North” for fighting London’s coronavirus restrictions, which hurt the regional economy. Born in Liverpool in 1970 to an Irish family, educated at Cambridge, and first elected to Parliament in 2001, he served 16 years in Westminster and held senior posts under Gordon Brown and Tony Blair before turning to local politics after two failed leadership bids. His latest win in the Makerfield by-election has brought him back to the national stage.
