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Andy Burnham takes office as British prime minister

The newly elected leader of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party is the third prime minister formally appointed by King Charles III

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham and King Charles III Aaron Chown/ Pool Photo via AP

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham and King Charles III

© Aaron Chown/ Pool Photo via AP

LONDON, July 20. /TASS/. Andy Burnham, the newly elected leader of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party, has taken office as prime minister after receiving King Charles III’s mandate to form a new government at Buckingham Palace, according to footage released by the royal press service.

Burnham, 56, will now head to the prime minister’s Downing Street residence, where he is expected to address the nation.

Burnham is the third prime minister formally appointed by King Charles III since the monarch ascended to the throne in September 2022.

Earlier, the king accepted the resignation of outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Burnham's political career

For the past nine years, Burnham served as mayor of Greater Manchester. He was a member of the House of Commons, the lower chamber of the British Parliament, from 2001 to 2017. He also held ministerial posts in Gordon Brown’s cabinet, including secretary of state for culture, media and sport (2008-2009) and secretary of state for health (2009-2010).

He first ran for the Labour leadership in 2010, finishing fourth. He made a second attempt in 2015, but failed once again.

A little over a month ago, Burnham returned to the House of Commons following the Labour Party's landslide defeat in local elections. Pressure from lawmakers backing Burnham forced Keir Starmer to step down as both Labour leader and prime minister, clearing the way for the former mayor to claim the top job. Burnham was declared Labour leader on July 17 without a party election after no other candidates entered the race.

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