Andy Burnham has been British Prime Minister for only a few hours but has already shown he is capable of surprising.
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No one had in fact predicted his choice of Chancellor of the Exchequer, perhaps the most delicate role in the new Government. The position was assigned to John Healey, a veteran of the party highly respected, who had resigned as Defense Minister in the previous Government led by Keir Starmer in protest against what he considered insufficient funds allocated to Defense. Considered a man of strong principles but also a pragmatic able to collaborate with everyone, Healey also worked at the Treasury for years and therefore knows how to manage public finances.
Equally unexpected was the appointment of Ed Miliband as Foreign Minister: the former Environment Minister and former leader of the Labour Party, a close ally of Burnham for years, was rumored to be in the running to become Chancellor. By promoting him to Foreign Affairs, the new Prime Minister solved two problems at once: he avoided a negative market reaction to a Treasury appointment of Miliband, considered too left-wing, and can put a more flexible person in Environment. Environmentalist Miliband had in fact opposed a resumption of drilling in the North Sea, which according to rumors is favored by the new Prime Minister. It is nevertheless a risky choice, since Miliband has no Foreign Affairs experience, just like Burnham, and for this reason an expert appointment was expected. Among the names mentioned in recent days was also David Miliband, Ed’s brother and former Foreign Minister in Gordon Brown’s Government, who has left politics years ago.
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The only sign of continuity with Keir Starmer’s outgoing Government is Shabana Mahmood, confirmed as Home Secretary. Known for her tough stance against illegal immigration, Mahmood has earned a reputation as a capable and uncompromising executor of the Government’s strategy. It is expected that her position will become “softer” in the Burnham Government, in line with the indications given by the new Prime Minister who is against a hard line on immigrants, especially if they arrived in Great Britain some time ago.
Burnham had said he wanted a Government that reflected “all the souls” of the Labour Party, but he has sidelined all of Starmer’s allies. Mahmood had in fact distanced herself from the former Prime Minister some time ago, advising him to resign.
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