Andy Burnham to become Prime Minister today and call for era of stable politics
LiveAndy Burnham to become Prime Minister today and call for era of stable politicsLuke Alsford|News ReporterPublishedJuly 20, 2026 7:41amUpdatedJuly 20, 2026 7:47amAndy Burnham will become Prime Minister. . .
LiveAndy Burnham to become Prime Minister today and call for era of stable politicsLuke Alsford|News ReporterPublishedJuly 20, 2026 7:41amUpdatedJuly 20, 2026 7:47amAndy Burnham will become Prime Minister today and lay out his vision for giving Britain more ‘breathing room’. SirKeir Starmerwill give his final address on the steps ofNumber 10at 11am before visiting the King to resign. Burnham will then travel toBuckingham Palacearound noon to become the Monarch’s fourth Prime Minister. The former GreaterManchesterMayor will then ride back to Downing Street to give his first address to the nation between 12. 30pm and 1pm. He will use the moment to say he is ‘acutely conscious’ that he will be the UK’s sixth PM in 10 years and will call for more ‘stable and responsible’ politics. Burnham will then end weeks of frenzied speculation and appoint his top team of Cabinet members. Shabana Mahmoodis expected to become Chancellor whileEd Milibandis rumoured to be made Foreign Secretary. Make sense of the mad world of British politicsGet analysis of the latest stories – including Nigel Farage’s resignation – direct to your inbox from Metro’s Senior Politics Reporter Craig Munro. Sign up here. A wave of new policy announcements are also expected by the new government. These are believed to include steps to bring down energy bills and cut bus fares. Sort:July 20, 2026 8:21 amPreparations underway in Downing StreetA media scrum is already amassed in Downing Street (Picture: REUTERS)The world’s media has assembled once again in front of the famous black door for a historic day in British politics. Teams are already preparing for the lectern to roll out and for Sir Keir to speak for to the nation for the final time. However it’s not quite clear if the lectern will be reappearing an hour later for Andy Burnham. It has been reported he might do away with the usual podium and try a fresh approach to his speech as a new PM. July 20, 2026 8:04 amWhat policies are Andy Burnham expected to announce?North Sea oil has been one of the big policy announcements teased by Burnham’s camp (Picture: PA)The PM-to-be has kept very quite about his plans for Number 10. One of the few decisions he has made is to scrap controversial plans for government-issues digital IDs. It has also been widely reported that Burnham will announce plans for new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. It is believed this will only mean supporting existing licenses rather than issuing new ones, so not to break Labour’s manifesto commitment. Burnham has also talked up his promise to tackle the cost-of-living, possibly by cutting bus faresIn an interview with the Times last night, Burnham talked about the tax-free personal allowance of £12,570. He said it was an issue that regularly comes up on the doorsteps, but hasn’t given away if he’ll make any tweaks to it. July 20, 2026 7:54 amHow the day will unfoldSir Keir Starmer will have the first lectern moment of the daySir Keir will kick off the day’s proceedings by resigning on the steps of Number 10 at 11am. He will then travel to Buckingham Palace to give the King the news, before Andy Burnham meets the Monarch at 12pm. After their chat, the new Prime Minister will travel back to Downing Street and give his first speech between around 12. 30pm and 1pm. Burnham will then head into Number 10, where he will receive his first ever briefings and write letters to the chiefs of the UK’s nuclear submarines. Then he will turn his mind to Cabinet appointments. This could kick off as early as 2pm, and stretch well into the afternoon. ArrowMORE:New British PM Andy Burnham let wife go on Blind Date and it was disastrousArrowMORE:Trump says people in ‘poverty-stricken UK are dancing in the streets’ over BurnhamArrowMORE:Andy Burnham vows to scrap Starmer’s controversial digital IDsAlright GovStraight-talking analysis from Westminster, straight to your inbox.