The King from the North: Burnham will smooth out the differences between Britain and the United States

The new British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, will try to restore relations between London and Washington, experts say. Tensions have been building between key partners on both sides of the Atlantic since Trump's inconclusive support for the war against Iran. At the same time, there may be disagreements about Israel. But fundamental changes in foreign policy, including with regard to the Russian Federation, are not expected, the British parliament told Izvestia. Burnham has already announced talks with Zelensky to assure him of continued support for Ukraine. About the future course of London under the seventh Prime Minister in 10 years — in the material of Izvestia.

The new British Prime Minister

Andy Burnham officially assumed the post of Prime Minister of Great Britain on July 20. After an audience with King Charles III, he was instructed to form a new government. Burnham has become the seventh British prime minister since 2016. During this time, the government was led by David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer. The latter, after a succession of heavyweights of British politics in the person of Cameron, May and Johnson, lasted the longest, and therefore high hopes are probably pinned on Burnham, who replaced the relatively stable Starmer. The new head of the cabinet also became the second consecutive prime minister to gain power through the change of the leader of the ruling party, rather than as a result of parliamentary elections. Which, perhaps, only adds to the pressure.

For about two years of Starmer's leadership, the Labor government has been trying to fulfill its election promise to ensure stability after several years of political crises under the Conservatives. However, the prime minister was unable to solve the tasks that he himself set for the government, Elena Ananyeva, head of the Center for British Studies at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia. According to her, it's not just about the personal qualities of a politician.

His decisions were met with resistance both within the parliamentary faction of the Labor Party and in society. For example, Starmer's office intended to reduce the cost of subsidies for pensioners to pay for heating. Due to the strong general discontent, the authorities were forced to abandon this decision. As a result, the expenses of ordinary Britons continued to increase. Popular outrage over migration policy has also played a role, as it remains one of the most sensitive areas of British reality. This is how the low ratings of the party forced the leaders to be castled.

The choice in favor of Burnham made it possible to avoid any mass discontent. Prior to that, he triumphantly returned to parliament, winning by-elections in the Makerfield district in north-west England. The politician also successfully led Greater Manchester for almost 10 years, for which he received the nickname "king of the North". He has already promised a lot of positive socially significant changes: for example, the largest housing construction program since the end of World War II and increased state control over housing and communal services, as well as the creation of jobs for young people. In his first speech at Downing Street, Burnham announced the biggest changes in the last 40 years.

However, the new prime minister will face the same economic and political constraints as his predecessor, Ananyeva believes. All his initiatives should receive the support of Parliament. Burnham will not be able to carry out reforms alone and risks encountering the resistance of his own faction, as previously happened with Starmer. The first conclusions about the real course of the new government can be drawn only after the presentation of the autumn budget and the appointment of the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

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Andy Burnham's Foreign Policy

But the priorities of foreign policy are likely to manifest themselves much faster, especially given Burnham's populist and emotional style of public speaking. Before his appointment, he had already stated the need to restore British "hard power", strengthen the army and expand national arms production. Burnham believes that defense spending should both strengthen security and promote the reindustrialization of former industrial areas.

He also advocates closer military cooperation with France, Germany and other European countries. We should hardly expect a departure from the close and long—established cooperation with our overseas partner, the United States. Burnham will have to smooth out some tensions between Washington and London that have arisen due to the war in the Middle East. At the end of his premiership, Keir Starmer refused to provide access to an airbase in Cyprus for conducting military operations against Iran, which caused extreme dissatisfaction with Trump. The American president responded to a similar demarche by Friedrich Merz by refusing to deploy long-range Tomahawk missiles in Germany.

"Burnham will keep the alliance with the United States largely because he understands that the majority of British voters are indifferent to foreign policy, but they want to feel safe," Richard Balfe, a member of the House of Lords, told Izvestia.

In the British establishment, as well as in the elites of other Western European countries, attitudes towards the United States are now taking shape through the prism of Trump, Natalia Eremina, Doctor of Political Sciences, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor at St. Petersburg State University, draws attention. According to her, Burnham, as a new person, will have to correct and correct the situation: the United States is an important partner for Great Britain, and they will try to establish relations.

By the way, Trump, as a seasoned businessman, has already approvingly commented on the first steps of Burnham, who is going to intensively develop the oil and gas fields of the North Sea. According to the American president, this will turn the United Kingdom "from a poor country into one of the richest states in the world."

— Burnham is a politician closely associated with the northern part of England, so I do not expect any large—scale new initiatives from him. He has the inherent caution characteristic of the British working class. I believe that he will act cautiously in foreign policy," Richard Balfe said.

Moreover, Starmer's national security adviser Jonathan Powell will retain his position under the new cabinet, which indicates continuity in foreign policy. London will continue to support Ukraine. Upon taking office, Burnham has already announced that he will call Vladimir Zelensky and assure him of his "unwavering" and "resolute" support. According to Balfe, this is just a pragmatic calculation, as further military assistance to Ukraine will help create jobs in the British defense sector.

Changes are possible, perhaps, only in the course of the kingdom in the Middle East. First, Burnham announced his intention to increase pressure on the Israeli government, for example, by banning trade in goods from illegal settlements. Moreover, he even apologized for London's initial support of the Jewish state's operation in Gaza. In general, the new British prime minister is unlikely to radically change the policy of one of the central countries in NATO and in the European space, however, individual decisions may slightly change the usual rhetoric in relations with key Western allies.