Andy Burnham sworn in as MP for Makerfield
Lindsay Hoyle says, in a particularly loud voice, ‘we now come to Andy Burnham, member for Makerfield.”
There is a heckle from Desmond Swayne.
And Burnham takes the oath.
Key events
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UK-EU summit scheduled for 22 July reportedly postponed to allow new PM more time to prepare
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Burnham jokes he’s ‘naughty boy’, after MP heckles ‘he’s not the messiah’ as he’s sworn in
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Andy Burnham sworn in as MP for Makerfield
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How Burnham dodged most of the press pack as he arrived at Euston
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Zelenskyy thanks Starmer for his support, and says he will always be ‘welcome guest in Ukraine’
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Burnham brushes aside question about his call for general election when Boris Johnson replaced as PM in 2022
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Starmer wrong to claim credit in resignation speech for ending austerity, says NEU teachers’ union leader
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Will Starmer stay on as MP for Holborn and St Pancras?
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Corbyn’s Your Party says Starmer ‘failed to stand up for working people, criminalised protest and aided Israel’s crimes in Gaza’
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Von der Leyen thanks Starmer, saying ‘European and Ukrainian security stronger because of you’
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Streeting says Burnham committed to ‘inclusive party that draws on best of our political traditions’
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Streeting says he won’t challenge for leadership, suggesting Burnham on course to become PM without contest
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Burnham confirms he will be candidate to replace Starmer, saying transition should be ‘positive process of renewal’
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‘Turmoil in Westminster’ making it harder for Welsh government to engage with UK PM, says Rhun ap Iorwerth
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Attorney general Lord Hermer says he does not think Starmer angry about his situation
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Australian PM Anthony Albanese pays tribute to Starmer saying he can be ‘proud’ of his contribution to UK
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Zack Polanski says Burnham’s recent policy talk ‘not encouraging’, and that as PM he ‘must be bold’
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Farage calls for general election
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How Burnham could become PM around 17 July
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What Starmer said about his achievements as PM
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Starmer ends speech saying he will leave ‘biggest job in country’ to spend more time on ‘most important job’, as dad and husband
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Starmer says new PM to take over mid July if Burnham unopposed, or by end of August if there’s election
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Starmer says he accepts ‘with good grace’ that he is not best person to lead Labour into next election
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Starmer confirms he is resigning
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Starmer says he proved his critics wrong
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Starmer says becoming PM two years ago proudest moment of his life
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Gus O’Donnell questions whether political turmoil linked to PMs being constrained by manifesto promises
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Starmer will put ‘interests of British people’ first in any decision he takes, says education minister Jacqui Smith
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Keir Starmer expected to announce exit timetable
UK-EU summit scheduled for 22 July reportedly postponed to allow new PM more time to prepare
Steven Swinford from the Times is reporting that the UK-EU summit, that had been scheduled for 22 July (during what is likely to be Andy Burnham’s first week as PM) has been rescheduled. He says:
The Brexit reset summit with the EU – which was scheduled for July 22nd – has been postponed
Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council, says that he hopes that Starmer’s successor will provide ‘continuity’
This was going to be a big moment for Starmer, but is now heading into the middle distance. Over to Andy Burnham…
And while we are talking about miracles and Andy Burnham taking the oath, Tom Peck from the Times has spotted another.
BREAKING: Andy Burnham owns a tie.
Burnham jokes he’s ‘naughty boy’, after MP heckles ‘he’s not the messiah’ as he’s sworn in
Desmond Swayne shouted “Rome is saved” as Andy Burnham was sworn in.
Someone else then shouted “he’s not the messiah”.
After a brief pause, Burnham replied jokingly suggesting he was a “naughty boy” instead. Someone else repeated the line.
And then another MP joked about Burnham “turning water into wine”.
Andy Burnham sworn in as MP for Makerfield
Lindsay Hoyle says, in a particularly loud voice, ‘we now come to Andy Burnham, member for Makerfield.”
There is a heckle from Desmond Swayne.
And Burnham takes the oath.
Douglas Lumsden, the new Tory MP for Aberdeen South, goes next. He reads out the normal version of the oath.
The Commons is sitting. And new MPs are taking their seats.
The first MP to do so is Lara Bird, the new SNP MP for Abroath and Broughty Ferry. She said she was only taking the oath so she could serve as an MP. Her loyalty was to the people of Scotland, she said.
How Burnham dodged most of the press pack as he arrived at Euston
Matthew Weaver
Matthew Weaver is a Guardian reporter.
Dozens of photographers, broadcasters and reporters jostled for position at the end of platform 13 waiting for the delayed 10.55am from Manchester.
“Who’s coming?” asked Naresh, a baffled tourist from New Delhi. When it was explained that Andy Burnham, the man set to be the UK next prime minister, was about to arrive in London Naresh was open mouthed. He said: “I’m amazed, in India the prime minister would be surrounded by security and he would never travel by train. It’s good to see because he’s a public servant.”
Burnham’s train finally got in at 1.31pm, 22 minutes late. Station staff tried to persuade the press pack to make room for hundreds of other passengers getting off the train. Some passengers jokingly posed for pictures as if it was them who were being greeted off the train by the world’s media. Burnham ally and Labour’s deputy leader Lucy Powell was one of the first off the train. She said nothing to a barrage of questions.
But there was no sign of Burham. The waiting press pack began to get restless as it became clear that the prime minister in waiting would not walking off the train with his fellow passengers. Instead he was ushered to an underpass below the station to a waiting cab.
The press pack then stampeded out of the station to the gated entrance of the underpass. Broadcasters from all over the world were doing pieces to camera as Burnham’s taxi edged out of the station. A helicopter hovered above.
Burnham was filmed at Manchester’s Piccadilly station getting on the train in a black T-shirt and jeans. Somewhere on the journey he made change of clothes. Through the windows of his cab he was seen wearing a jacket and white shirt on his way to the House of Commons to be sworn in as the new MP for Makerfield.
Here is John Crace’s sketch of Keir Starmer’s resignation speech this morning.
Andy Burnham posted a picture earlier of the leaving present he was given by staff at the Greater Manchester combined authority when he visited the office this morning before setting off for London.
The quote, ‘This is Manchester, we do things differently here’, is attributed to the Haçienda founder and record boss Tony Wilson, but doesn’t seem to have been said by him in real life. Instead, the actor Steve Coogan, playing Wilson in a biopic, delivered the line in a script written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce.
Zelenskyy thanks Starmer for his support, and says he will always be ‘welcome guest in Ukraine’
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president, has paid tribute to Keir Starmer. In a message on social media, he said:
Keir, thank you for all our cooperation, your support, and the joint decisions that have helped make our Europe and our protection of life stronger.
The United Kingdom has been, is, and will remain among the world’s leaders. Here in Ukraine, we deeply value Britain, and every meeting and every conversation we have had has always been filled with real substance.
Thank you for always being in touch, always engaged, and always striving to do what is needed and what will truly help.
I wish the United Kingdom and all British people every success as well as realisation of your national goals. We have confidence in Britain.
Keir, you are always a welcome guest in Ukraine.
Burnham brushes aside question about his call for general election when Boris Johnson replaced as PM in 2022
Andy Burnham has been speaking to reporters on the platform at Euston.
He said he had made his statement earlier praising the PM’s dedication and service, and confirming that he would be a candidate.
When it was put to him that he called for an immediate general election when Rishi Sunak took over as PM, Burnham said: “I think you’re talking several hurdles ahead there.”
He said it had been sad to leave Greater Manchester. The people had been brilliant to him, he said, and he loved every minute of it. “I hope I leave Manchester in a better place.”
The reporter was referring to this tweet from Burnham posted during the 2022 Tory leadership contest.
We need to start demanding a General Election at the end of this Tory leadership election.
They were all elected on a manifesto promise to level up the North and are all abandoning it.
At the time, when someone responded to Burnham saying Labour did not call an election when Tony Blair was replaced by Gordon Brown, Burnham replied:
No, but then we didn’t have a major change of political direction nor ditch the core mission on which we were elected – as the Tories are poised to do with levelling up.
Ben Riley-Smith from the Telegraph says the lack of cabinet support for Keir Starmer was evident from how few ministers were in No 10 to hear his resignation speech this morning. (See 12pm.)
If you want to understand why Starmer resigned glancing left during his speech at the group of supporters gathered explains the reason.
There were less than half a dozen cabinet ministers visible and present for their boss’s resignation – David Lammy, David Jones, Jenny Chapman, Richard Hermer, (possibly Steve Reed too, his aides were there.)
That is just a fraction of the 27 ministers who sit round his Cabinet table.
Starmer had lost support from too many around his cabinet (and the wider parliamentary party) to carry on.
Anna Turley, the Labour chair, thinks Riley-Smith is being unfair. She posted this in response.
Hi there Ben you don’t seem to recognise that MPs live in constituencies and travel in on Monday mornings. I had to watch this speech on a train with bad wifi.
