Britain’s King Charles III, shakes hands with Britain’s new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, during an audience at Buckingham Palace, London on July 20, 2026 (Photo by Aaron Chown / POOL / AFP)
Andy Burnham officially became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on Monday after meeting King Charles III at Buckingham Palace, succeeding Keir Starmer as the country’s new leader.
The formal transition followed Starmer’s resignation, which the King accepted before inviting Burnham to form a new government. Burnham accepted the invitation, completing the constitutional process that ushered him into office as Britain’s sixth prime minister in the past decade.
Earlier, Starmer delivered a farewell speech outside 10 Downing Street, defending his record during his two years in office.
“I am confident that Britain is now stronger and fairer than it was two years ago,” he said.
“I go with good grace, I go with a smile, and I go proud of everything that we have achieved.”
Burnham, 56, now inherits a government facing significant economic and political challenges. In his first address as prime minister, he is expected to outline plans to restore public confidence in government, ease the cost-of-living crisis, stimulate economic growth and expand devolution to regional communities.
His administration is also expected to announce senior cabinet appointments, with particular attention on who will succeed Rachel Reeves as Chancellor.
In an interview with The Times, Burnham pledged to break from recent approaches to governance, arguing that Britain needed a fresh direction after years of political instability.
“What we’ve been doing hasn’t been working. That’s the way I see it,” he said. “I am going to try and do things in a different way.”
The former Mayor of Greater Manchester, widely known as the “King of the North,” was selected by the Labour Party following Starmer’s resignation last month. Labour MPs viewed him as the party’s strongest candidate to counter the growing popularity of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
Among Burnham’s immediate priorities are reviving Britain’s sluggish economy, addressing rising government borrowing costs, tackling a growing welfare bill and responding to continued small-boat migrant crossings that have boosted support for Reform UK.
His government will also contend with volatile global energy prices linked to the US-Iran conflict and uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump’s policies.
Burnham said his economic strategy would focus on investing earlier to prevent long-term social and economic problems.
“I’ll take a different approach to public spending and to running the economy — more focused on early investment, early intervention, setting people up for success and much less paying for failure,” he told The Times.
He also promised swift measures to help households struggling with the cost of living, saying the issue dominated conversations during his campaign.
Starmer led Labour to a landslide general election victory in July 2024, ending 14 years of Conservative rule. However, he announced his resignation in June after his administration was weakened by a series of scandals, policy reversals and political setbacks.
Burnham, who returned to Parliament only four weeks ago, now has limited time to deliver results before the next general election, expected in 2029, with Reform UK currently leading opinion polls.
A Member of Parliament between 2001 and 2017, Burnham previously served as a minister under former Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before becoming Mayor of Greater Manchester. In recent years, he has cultivated a reputation as a grassroots politician, combining a relaxed public style with an active social media presence.
Addressing supporters after securing the Labour leadership, Burnham described his premiership as the party’s “last chance” to regain public trust.
Although critics have questioned the speed of his rise to the top and whether he has a clear mandate, Burnham insists he has a comprehensive plan for government.
His first major policy decision came over the weekend when he scrapped the previous government’s proposed nationwide digital identity scheme, estimated to cost £1.8 billion over three years.
A spokesperson said the funds would instead be redirected to areas of greater public need, particularly measures aimed at easing the cost-of-living crisis.
