Andy Burnham described by Donald Trump as ‘mayor of a town’ and ‘extremely liberal’
The US President said while he didn’t know much about the UK’s likely next leader Andy Burnham, he described him as ‘a mayor of a town’ who leaned to the left.
US President Donald Trump has described Andy Burnham - Britain’s likely next Prime Minister - as a “mayor of a town” whose left wing leanings would restrict oil drilling in the North Sea.
The subject of oil drilling in that particular maritime area and outgoing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s opposition to it was a bugbear for Mr Trump, who doubled down on his previous statements on the matter when asked about Mr Burnham on Thursday.
Former Greater Manchester Mayor Mr Burnham’s election to the safe UK Labour seat of Makerfield has virtually assured his spot as the country’s next leader following Sir Keir’s announcement on Monday that he would be stepping down as Prime Minister to allow a new leader to take Labour to the next federal election.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Mr Burnham is now the only contender for the party’s leadership contest to replace Sir Keir, a situation that could lead to his appointment by mid-July.
Mr Trump, who had previously described Sir Keir as “no Winston Churchill”, was reserved in his comments about the Sir Keir’s likely successor.
“I don’t know anything,” Mr Trump said, according to Reuters.
“I see that he was, I guess the mayor of a town.
“I hear he’s extremely liberal, extremely, so that means he probably won’t open up the North Sea. You know I gave Keir Starmer some pretty good advice, I said open up the North Sea.”
Sir Keir’s relationship with Mr Trump started off surprisingly well with Great Britain one of the first countries to hammer out a relatively favourable trade deal with the US under the President’s so-called Liberation Day tariffs in 2025.
That relationship soon soured over Mr Trump’s aggression in Iran, when the UK initially rejected US use of British bases for strikes on the Middle Eastern country.
Mr Trump’s criticisms of Sir Keir continued into the weekend, when he used social media to prematurely announce the UK Prime Minister’s resignation ahead of the statement delivered by the British leader outside No.10 Downing Street on Monday.
Mr Burnham’s odds of becoming the country’s next leader narrowed further on Thursday as Starmer ally and current finance minister Rachel Reeves lent her support to his tilt at the top job, despite reports she could lose her role in a reshuffle.
“I’m supporting Andy to be prime minister,” she told the BBC on Thursday.
Ms Reeves, a close ally of Sir Keir, said no one could doubt her commitment to the outgoing prime minister, adding that she had worked alongside him for six years.
