Could former Culcheth resident become prime minister?

ANDY Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester and a former Culcheth resident, appears not to have ruled out the possibility of challenging for leadership of the Labour Party.

During a live interview with GB News, the former Leigh MP and one-time Shadow Home Secretary refused to rule out the possibility of him returning to Westminster.
But he insisted he still has a job to finish in the North West.

Mr Burnham spent much of his youth in the Culcheth area and was a pupil at St Aelred’s Catholic High School, Newton-le-Willows.

During the broadcast, he was asked by interviewer Eamonn Holmes if he would be returning to national politics in Westminster. He refused to rule it out and replied: “No time soon.”
He also left a door open in reply to a suggestion that he is the natural candidate to replace Labour Party leader Keir Starmer.

But he also admitted that he found it difficult at times to function effectively in Westminster when he was part of the Labour front-bench.

He added: “My heart is here and always has been. I love the North West of England, I love Manchester but I’ve got affinities to Liverpool as well.

“I just always felt a bit of a fish out of water at times in Westminster, it wasn’t my natural habitat.”

He said he had a tough job to do in Manchester – and was staying put in Manchester to serve a full second term as mayor. But he would be open to suggestions when that ends in May 2024.

“I’m really genuinely passionate about what we’re doing here. The North of England I think has got the best opportunity we’ll ever have to change, to get the transport that we need.

“This sounds like a politician’s answer, but it actually happens to be true, I love what I’m doing here, I consider it a complete privilege to do this, serving a full second term.
“Obviously, I might consider my options after that, but I actually feel much happier in this job than I ever did when I was in Westminster and the reason why is that you can be yourself.”

Mr Burnham suggested he valued the independence his current role afforded him: “Sometimes in politics in Westminster, you have to behave a certain way, to say certain things, to vote in a certain way.”