The question in Westminster has shifted from who will be prime minister to who will fill the senior roles in Andy Burnham’s government, as the remaining obstacles to his succession to Sir Keir Starmer fell away on June 24.
Senior minister Darren Jones confirmed on Wednesday that he would not launch a leadership challenge, removing a potential rival who could have commanded significant backbench support. Former Armed Forces Minister Al Carns, the BBC reported, has not ruled out a bid, but would require the backing of 81 Labour MPs to trigger a formal contest — a threshold BBC correspondents described as “vanishingly unlikely” to be met.
With Burnham’s accession treated as settled by Labour MPs, attention has turned to his appointments. A key early decision is the choice of chancellor. Rachel Reeves, who has served as chancellor for the past two years and spent years in opposition shaping Labour’s economic approach, will not remain in the role, the BBC reported. She is likely to be offered a more junior cabinet position, a significant demotion that has few modern precedents.
Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, is widely seen as the frontrunner to replace Reeves. According to the BBC, supporters argue Miliband is the kind of chancellor Burnham would need to deliver his vision of economic transformation and that Miliband has shown uncommon ability to drive the government machine during his tenure at energy. He also has Treasury experience from his years advising Gordon Brown.
However, the prospect has divided the parliamentary party. “I think the chancellor thing is a huge risk for Andy,” one Labour MP told the BBC. “If Andy goes through with Ed it will divide the party from the start,” another MP said.
Wes Streeting, the health secretary, has also been positioning for the role. His allies have been lobbying for him, arguing he would be a “sensible choice” who could reassure financial markets, the BBC reported. One minister cautioned, however, that Streeting’s own leadership ambitions could create friction: “Wes wants to be prime minister one day. Would Andy ever be able to trust that Wes would have his back when things are tough?”
Other names in consideration include Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, who like Burnham is a former chief secretary to the Treasury, and John Healey, the former defence secretary — though appointing Healey would commit Burnham to a large increase in defence spending, the BBC noted.
One appointment has been decided: James Purnell, a former culture secretary and work and pensions secretary, would serve as Burnham’s chief of staff. Purnell was seen as a firm Blairite on the right of the Labour Party during his time in elected politics, and notably resigned from Gordon Brown’s government in 2009 in an attempt to replace Brown with David Miliband. However, the BBC reported the appointment may reflect deep personal ties rather than ideological alignment.
Purnell and Burnham are three months apart in age. Both served as special advisers in Sir Tony Blair’s first government before being elected as Labour MPs for Greater Manchester constituencies in 2001. They shared an office as new MPs and entered the cabinet together in 2007. For years they played together on the same New Labour football team, “Demon Eyes.” Since leaving politics in 2010, Purnell spent seven years as a senior executive at the BBC.
As Burnham’s succession becomes more inevitable and his transition preparations formalise, further speculation about cabinet appointments is expected — and, the BBC noted, more questions from Labour MPs about what the choices reveal about the political direction of the incoming prime minister.