Can Andy Burnham fix Britain? 4 difficult tasks await the new British Prime Minister

Andy Burnham has officially taken over as the UK’s new Prime Minister and entered 10 Downing Street on a wave of enthusiasm and a host of challenges ahead.

After serving almost a decade as mayor of Greater Manchester, a region of about 3 million people in north-west England, Burnham was returned to parliament in a special election last month. His appointment as prime minister now marks a major shift from running a regional administration to running a country of around 70 million people. Here’s a look at the key challenges ahead for Burnham

Strengthening the economy and decentralizing the government

Burnham will inherit an economy that showed signs of recovery until the Iran war derailed the outlook. Economists now predict that growth will slow significantly this year, while inflation will rise.

Quick answers to key questions

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Andy Burnham faces several challenges, including supporting the economy, decentralizing government, dealing with foreign policy issues, managing migration and dealing with the ongoing cost of living crisis.

Burnham plans to unveil a detailed strategy to tackle the cost of living crisis, which includes devolving funding to local governments and restoring public control of essential services.

For Burnham, decentralization of government is essential to redirect funding to local authorities that can better respond to regional needs and improve the delivery of public services after decades of privatisation.

Burnham intends to continue Labour’s current approach to immigration, focusing on reducing net migration and supporting legislation aimed at restricting small boat crossings while ensuring safer legal routes.

Burnham aims to maintain strong commitments to NATO and Britain’s nuclear deterrent, while being willing to disagree with leaders like Trump, reflecting a more balanced approach to international relations than his predecessor.

So domestic issues are high on Burnham’s agenda, and he has already pledged to unveil a plan on Tuesday outlining how his government will fund efforts to lower the cost of living.

Central to his plan is decentralizing government, funneling money to local governments and removing some services that were privatized four decades ago.

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Joshi Herrmann, founder of Manchester news website The Mill, who has covered Burnham for years, told the AP that while he may be able to soften the blow for some struggling people, if the question is who can reshape the economy in the post-Brexit, post-financial crash era, I would be very surprised if it is Andy Burnham.

Burnham won’t have much room to increase spending. Having replaced Starmer, who was elected on a manifesto that ruled out a rise in the government’s main tax rates, he is locked in unless he breaks those promises.

Foreign Policy in the Trump Era

Burnham has promised to uphold NATO commitments, support the UK’s nuclear deterrent and remain a strong ally of Ukraine. Despite being heavily critical of Trump in the past, he said he would treat him with civility, as he does with others, but would also be willing to disagree.

The two leaders spoke Monday in one of Burnham’s first calls with a foreign leader. His office said he told Trump he was committed to securing shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and ensuring the defense and security of the UK and its allies.

It also remains to be seen how far Burnham will go in restoring relations with the European Union after Brexit.

News about Israel’s war with Hamas

Burnham has previously criticized Starmer’s approach to Israel’s war with Hamas and promised the UK would consider further sanctions against Israelis involved in violence in Gaza and illegal settlements in the West Bank.

The issue is a sensitive one for Labour, which was found to be tainted by anti-Semitism even before Starmer took office, and also relies on the support of a large Muslim population.

The hot topic of migration

During his first speech as Prime Minister, Burnham did not mention immigration, a key issue for many British voters.

Like many rich countries, the UK has seen an increase in migration as people flee war, poverty and persecution. At the same time, an increase in the number of small boat crossings across the English Channel fueled anti-immigration sentiment.

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Burnham has largely said she will follow Labour’s current migration playbook, which offers to cut net migration from more than 900,000 in 2023 to 171,000 last year. Channel overruns are down 40% this year compared to the same period in 2025.

Burnham wants to continue reducing net migration and voted in favor of the bill, which aims to further reduce channel crossings and direct people to safer and legal routes.