King Charles III appointed Andy Burnham as the fourth prime minister of his reign, with convention ensuring a smooth handover of power at Buckingham Palace.
Handover of Power
Charles, in his role as head of state, accepted the resignation of outgoing premier Sir Keir Starmer and requested Mr Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, form a new Government. The event was a family occasion with Mr Starmer joined by his wife and children for his final meeting with the King, while the new Prime Minister took the unusual step of bringing his spouse.
The appointment was confirmed in a statement from Buckingham Palace that will also appear in the Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements: "His Majesty received in audience the Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP and requested him to form a new administration. The Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP accepted the King’s offer and kissed hands upon his appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury. Ms Marie-France van Heel was also received by His Majesty."
Ceremonial Details
The day’s events dictated Mr Starmer visit the King first and as he arrived the changing of the guard ceremony was taking place in the palace forecourt and hundreds of tourists stood by the palace gates to watch the military spectacle. Sir Clive Alderton, the King and Queen’s principal private secretary, greeted the outgoing prime minister warmly, patting his hand twice and touching his shoulder and he kissed his wife Lady Victoria Starmer on both cheeks.
Travelling in the car behind were the couple’s teenage son and daughter, rarely seen in public with their parents, who joined the 30-minute long audience with the King towards the end with their mother. Soon afterwards Mr Burnham arrived with his Dutch-born wife Marie-France van Heel, who has worked in marketing and strategy for many years and was once a contestant on Cilla Black’s show Blind Date.
Audience with the King
Sir Clive greeted the former mayor of Greater Manchester with the words "welcome back", adding to his wife "hello, lovely to see you, welcome to Buckingham Palace", and he said to the couple "please let’s go and see the King". The audience lasted almost 35 minutes with the politician’s wife joining towards the end of the meeting in the Chinese drawing room.
The country’s new Prime Minister was cheered by tourists as he left his audience with the King hand in hand with his wife. A large group of visitors to the summer opening of the palace had gathered on the other side of the palace’s quadrangle and their vocal greeting was acknowledged by Mr Burnham and his partner with a wave.
