Burnham uses first speech as PM to call for ‘unity’

The comments come amid criticism of senior Labour figure Ed Miliband, with briefings including warnings he would be a “threat to Britain” in No 11.

Mr Burnham said: “They haven’t come from my team and I’m appalled at those briefings.

“I’m appalled at any colleague being on the receiving end of an anonymous briefing.

“And coming back to Westminster I kind of see that having gone to another level and it really does demean our politics.

“For me, that is what I’m coming in to change – to get some respect back, some teamwork going.”

He called for a “wider cultural change” in politics, where criticism of colleagues is replaced with cooperation and accountability.

He told broadcasters: “I’m talking about a different type of politics.

“You know what I feel very strongly?

“I don’t believe politicians get the right to stand on someone’s doorstep and point fingers at everyone else when all politics has not been working for people.

“All parties have failed in one way or another.

“You don’t get the right to point fingers when you’ve not been good enough yourselves and that’s what I’m coming in, with that honesty, and myself included, my generation of politicians hasn’t been good enough.”

He said: “Things have been in flux for a long time now.

“We all have to be better and that’s my message.

“We have to change the way we do politics, turn the country around.

“Now, nobody can be happy with the fact that we’re seeing all of this turbulence and I’m conscious that I’m the sixth person to walk up Downing Street in the last decade, that isn’t good enough. We need to be better. We will be better.”