Reeves backs Burnham for PM despite reports she may be demoted
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has publicly endorsed Andy Burnham as the next prime minister, despite speculation she could lose her position in a reshuffle.
Rachel Reeves, the UK chancellor, has given her support to Andy Burnham to become the next prime minister, even as reports suggest she may be moved to a junior cabinet role. In an interview with the BBC, Reeves said she and Burnham were friends and did not rule out accepting a lower-ranking post.
“I’m supporting Andy to be prime minister,” she said. Asked about reports that Burnham could offer her a more junior role, Reeves responded: “I’m not going to pre-empt the decisions that the new prime minister will make. I’m backing Andy. I think he’d be a great prime minister, but those are his decisions, not mine to make.”
Reeves, who became the first female chancellor after Labour’s landslide victory in 2024, attended Burnham’s rally at Westminster Hall on Monday and was absent when outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivered his resignation speech. However, she told the broadcaster that “no one could doubt” her commitment to Starmer, with whom she has worked closely since he became PM.
“I’ve been by his side for six years now as shadow chancellor and then as chancellor of the exchequer,” she said. “I know that whoever is prime minister and chancellor in the future will inherit a stronger economy than the one I inherited two years ago.”
Her support comes after reports that one of Reeves’s top aides has urged major UK companies and trade associations to lobby Burnham to keep her in the top treasury job. According to Sky News, officials including Katie Martin, appointed as Reeves’s business adviser in January, called several large companies in insurance, banking, defence, and other sectors this week, making the case for “stability” and “continuity.”
Speculation about Burnham’s choice for chancellor has grown as the new MP for Makerfield moves closer to Number 10. The next occupant of Number 11 could define his premiership, with MPs saying it will signal how radical he intends to be.
Burnham’s supporters are reportedly divided, with a briefing war between advocates of former health secretary Wes Streeting and those close to energy secretary Ed Miliband. Some allies see Streeting as a safer choice for business and the fossil fuel industry, while others lobby for Miliband, seen as more likely to back radical reforms.
Some within Labour have cautioned against Miliband, with Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones suggesting the former party leader would not meet his “tests” for a new chancellor. Jones said any chancellor should not seek to “control” the PM but should “reassure” markets, unions, MPs, and the public.
Burnham moved a step closer to leading Labour on Wednesday after Jones said he would not stand in the leadership contest. Former armed forces minister Al Carns, who resigned earlier this month over defence spending, has not ruled out running. On social media, Carns said the country “needs a proper debate about where we go next. Not a reshuffle. Not a few degrees of course correction. The big, difficult, honest choices we’ve spent 30 years avoiding.” The former marine set out “five tests” for any leader, including higher defence spending and implicit criticism of government energy policy.
