Why Allies Are So Certain We're Heading For An Andy Burnham Coronation

Andy Burnham is likely to run uncontested to be the UK’s next prime minister, according to the Makerfield MP’s allies.

Keir Starmer decided to resign on Monday after acknowledging “with good grace” that the parliamentary Labour Party did not want him to lead them into the next general election.

The prime minister had said he would join any contest after his greatest rival won a comfortable victory in the Makerfield by-election last week.

But support for the former Greater Manchester mayor snowballed over the weekend and even Starmer’s own cabinet ministers urged him to resign.

Shortly after his statement, ex-health secretary Wes Streeting – who had vowed to run in a leadership contest – rowed in behind Burnham, too.

Though nominations for the leadership contest do not open until July 9, the Makerfield MP is the only one who has publicly declared his plan to run.

Burnham posed for a selfie with a staggering number of his Labour colleagues in Westminster Hall on Monday afternoon, demonstrating how much support he had even from his first day back in parliament.

According to The Times, he had his first meeting with Starmer since winning last week’s by-election on Tuesday.

Though he has been parachuted into a north-west seat once Labour MPs decided Starmer’s time was up, Burnham did work as the MP for Leigh between 2001 and 2017 and was part of Gordon Brown’s cabinet.

His expertise and popularity meant many in the parliamentary party think there’s simply no point in opposing him – especially as he saw off the threat of Reform UK in Makerfield – even though his government policies are still unclear.

One source within Burnham’s team told HuffPost UK: “There’s just no point. We’ll probably have two thirds of the PLP backing him. Why bother?”

They said while there are a few hardcore Starmerites looking to oppose Burnham’s move into No.10, “most MPs can be won over to Andy’s camp” via the “friends’ network” – where MPs try to persuade their own mates to back him.

Another supporter echoed this sentiment, saying: “It’s all about having an orderly transition to Andy now.”

An insider also dismissed speculation that chief secretary to the prime minister Darren Jones might have enough support to run against Burnham.

Labour Party rules state an MP needs the support of 81 colleagues to stand in a contest.

“He was sounding people out the other month, but I don’t think that’ll work at all,” they said.

Al Carns, who quit as Armed Forces minister two weeks ago in protest over defence spending, previously said he would enter a leadership race.

However, he is yet to put his name forward and speculation over just how much support he would galvanise remains.

On BBC Radio 4′s Today programme, Burnham backer and Bassetlaw MP Jo White described a contest as a “a pointless charade”.

“The majority of MPs I’ve spoken to so far – even MPs I hadn’t anticipated – have told me they’re going to be backing Andy,” White said.

She said Burnham intends to speak to as many MPs as possible and outline his policies in a major speech next week.

“If we have a competition or a contest this whole thing will extend until September. The Labour Party loves turning in on itself, naval-gazing,” White said.

“I’ve been very much scarred by the Corbyn years where we spent too long thinking about ourselves rather than thinking about what’s best for the country.”

She dismissed the theory that more left-wing corners of the party could force Burnham to pivot to more socialist policies in exchange for their vote if there was a contest.

She said that that part of the party struggled to get the support during the deputy leadership race last year, adding: “What I suggest to them is that they engage in conversations with Andy right now, listen to what he has to say, and they can come to an understanding to what he wants to do in government.”

However this is not a universal view.

Nadia Whittome, MP for Nottingham East, is on the left of the party and warned: “We need to do more than all have a chat. It’s not about in-fighting, elections are a normal part of the political process.”

HuffPost UK also reported last week that foreign secretary Yvette Cooper had some supporters who wanted her to run and give the Labour Party its first female leader.

Nominations will close on July 16. If Burnham runs uncontested, he could get the keys to No.10 by July 18.

If a rival appears, a race will run throughout the summer, allowing Labour members to vote on their preferred candidate via an alternative vote system (a preferential ballot).

 A new prime minister will then be installed by September 1 when MPs return to Westminster after summer recess.

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