Burnham to U-turn on demand to reverse Brexit during by-election, allies say

Andy Burnham could be the country’s next prime minister within months. So, one question on everyone’s lips is what would his policies look like if he was running the country? Many have already cited comments he made to the Labour Party conference last year when he said that he wanted to rejoin the European Union. “I hope it happens in my lifetime,” he told delegates. “I believe in the unions of all kinds. The union of the UK. The European Union, and the benefits it brought this country. Trade unions… People prosper more when they’re part of unions. That’s my belief, and I’ll say it clearly.” However, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, is understood to have told supportive MPs in the Red Wall that he is not going to be “going big on Europe” in his pitch to voters and the country. Shorts Another ally said: “Of course he will want to talk about a closer relationship with Europe, but he is not going to start talking about rejoining the EU.” His volte face on such a pivotal issue could be down to the seat that he will contest in the forthcoming by-election. Makerfield voted 65 per cent to Leave the EU in 2016 and was the 75th most Leave-heavy voting seat in the country. Reform, which have already vowed to weaponise Burmham’s comments on rejoining the EU, came second to Labour in the 2024 General Election. Labour’s majority was cut to just 5,399 – making it one of the top target seats for Nigel Farage’s party. Burnham is understood to have spent months perfecting his pitch to MPs in the event that he found a seat in Parliament. He has long harboured an ambition to return to Westminster, however until this week, there was no clear route back for him. That all changed on Thursday, when Josh Simons, the Labour MP for Makerfield, in the North of England, announced that he was resigning his seat to make way for Burnham. Simons told the BBC on Friday morning that resigning his seat was a “difficult decision”, but he believes the Greater Manchester mayor can “drive the change the country is crying out for” if he wins. Would Reeves stay on as Chancellor? According to Burnham’s allies, he is a “bit of a one-man band” and does not have a large coterie of Westminster friends. His closest political allies are Lucy Powell, Labour’s Deputy Leader, Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, and Heidi Alexander, the Transport Secretary. Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, is also believed to be among his supporters and is said to have his eye on the job of chancellor in any future Burnham Government. However, allies say that Burnham may consider keeping Rachel Reeves in post. Such a move may be difficult for Burnham, given she is so closely associated with Starmer’s leadership and economic policies in the eyes of the public. One ally said: “Andy is actually really close to Rachel. When he was running to be leader in 2015, Rachel was one of the first MPs to endorse him and would have been his shadow chancellor had he won the contest. He will certainly be considering whether to leave her in post to help steady the bond markets, although he may also be thinking he needs some kind of break from the past.” On Friday, UK borrowing costs reached a new 18-year high and the pound fell in the wake of Burmham’s decision to fight a by-election. While other European government borrowing costs also rose, the UK’s movements are greater, which analysts said has been fuelled by market concerns that a Burnham-led government would increase borrowing. In an interview with the New Statesman last year, Burnham said the government had to “get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets”. Economic model dubbed ‘Manchesterism’ Burham is understood to be pushing a new economic model – sometimes dubbed “Manchesterism” – that would devolve power away from Whitehall. He supports bringing fundamental services and “essentials”, such as housing, energy, transport, and water, into public control or coordination to regulate prices and keep costs low. Burnham has also long been an outspoken proponent of taxing wealth more effectively.One supportive MP said: “At the heart of Manchestrism is an ideology that can hold the different factions of the Labour party together.” Burnham’s Cabinet would likely be a “broad church,” according to those who know him well. “He would want to surround himself with the most talented people from the left and the right,” one source said. That would likely include a return to Cabinet for both Angela Rayner, the former Deputy Prime Minister, and Wes Streeting, the former Health Secretary. He would also seek to engage with MPs from the Socialist Campaign Group, which includes the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, although they are not expected to be given roles in his Cabinet. It has previously been reported that Burnham had promised at least one Cabinet post and two junior ministers to members of the group in exchange for their support.