London | A referendum 10 years ago on this day set the UK on a new path as a non-member of the European Union (EU) and the turmoil of that Brexit vote continues to play out as the country prepares for its seventh prime minister in a decade.
Keir Starmer, now a caretaker Prime Minister after he lost the confidence of his Labour Party MPs and resigned, has set out a three-week timetable for his successor to be elected. However, as things stand on Tuesday, newly elected member of Parliament for Makerfield Andy Burnham looks set for a so-called "coronation", given the sheer number of party members behind his candidacy.
"Keir has given huge service to our country and I want to thank him for his leadership and dedication during such a challenging period," said Burnham, the former Mayor of Greater Manchester.
"His decision marks the beginning of a transition and it is important that this process is conducted in an orderly and responsible way. I will put myself forward as part of this process," he declared.
He was formally sworn in as an MP at the House of Commons soon after Starmer's emotional resignation speech at 10 Downing Street on Monday. It marked a return to Westminster for the former Labour Cabinet minister who has contested, and lost, two previous leadership elections.
But the momentum is very much in his favour this time as another high-profile potential contender for the top job, former health secretary Wes Streeting, threw his weight behind Burnham.
"I've also been setting out ideas to change our country... Having spoken at length with Andy in recent days, I'm convinced that there is a place for those ideas under his leadership," said Streeting.
"We could spend the summer exaggerating small differences, or we can roll up our sleeves and help him deliver the change our party and our country needs. That is the choice that I am making and I hope that everyone else will back Andy, too," he said, paving the way for a much shorter contest.
Under Starmer's timetable, Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) will open nominations for the party leadership between July 9 and 17 for a new party chief and PM to be installed at 10 Downing Street by September. Some of his close allies are now hard at work behind the scenes to encourage other candidates to throw their hat in the race to ensure Burnham's ideas are fully scrutinised and that he is not elected unopposed.
One of the Cabinet members, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones, is among those said to be gearing up to challenge Burnham once the nominations open. Al Carns, a former armed forces minister who recently resigned over defence funding differences with Starmer, is also said to be considering his candidacy.
However, given the hundreds of MPs openly in favour of a Burnham leadership, the process is likely to merely be an opportunity to force his hand on spelling out his vision for the country.
"People want to see progress on economic growth, cost of living, public services, housing and opportunities for the next generation. Political change should never distract from the responsibility to improve people's lives," Burnham has said.
But he will now be expected to lay out policy details of how he expects to achieve those goals.
The 56-year-old University of Cambridge-educated politician, who made his mark as a Labour MP under former prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, is seen as a socialist with a Left-leaning agenda. He exited Westminster politics to be elected Mayor of Greater Manchester and has spent the last nine years in the northern England region – earning the title of "King of the North".
As Starmer's woes mounted, Burnham's was the loudest voice of dissent, and his allies in the Commons began putting the final touches to what a change of course for the Labour Party would look like. The turning point came with Josh Simmons resigning as MP of Makerfield to trigger a by-election that would clear the decks for Burnham's chance at the topmost job in British politics.
He went on to clinch a solid Labour victory in Makerfield against a surging far-right Reform UK, with the vote seen as a veritable referendum on Starmer's leadership.
"In many ways, he's a popular local mayor, just as Boris Johnson was a popular mayor in London just a few years ago. But what really happened here is it was 'vote Burnham, get Starmer out'," said Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, in the face of his party's humiliating defeat.
Farage is now demanding a general election "as soon as possible" on the grounds that Burnham has "no mandate whatsoever" to lead the country, accusing him of "flip-flopping" on policies.
