Andy Burnham elected new Labour leader, now set to be UK PM

Veteran UK politician Andy Burnham was Friday confirmed as the new leader of the ruling Labour Party, and is now set to be Britain’s next prime minister.

“There being no other eligibly nominated candidate, it is therefore my honour to declare that the duly elected leader of the Labour Party is Andy Burnham,” interior minister Shabana Mahmood told a special party conference.

Burnham, Britain’s incoming prime minister, said he had not yet decided who would serve in his cabinet but his team of senior ministers would reflect all parts of the Labour Party.

Speaking in London after being formally confirmed as Labour leader and succeeding Keir Starmer, Burnham said he had not yet made up his mind about the composition of his top team.

“I haven’t made any decisions yet about who will be in that top team. But I will soon, and when I have, you will see it reflects all parts of our party, all communities,” Burnham said.

The new party leader also said that he would be a pro-business leader of the Labour Party, saying his experience working with businesses as mayor of Greater Manchester would be a model for government.

“I will be a pro-business leader of the Labour Party, as I was a pro-business mayor of Greater Manchester,” Burnham said after being confirmed as the new Labour Party leader, succeeding Keir Starmer.

“We turn places round together, and that is the way we ran in Manchester, and we will take to the whole country,” Burnham added, referring to his record of working with businesses to drive economic growth in the region.