Andy Burnham has faced criticism from Westminster figures after playing an electric guitar alongside a soldier during his first foreign trip as Prime Minister to Ukraine. One veteran former cabinet minister said: “There is a bloody war on and he’s acting like he’s at f***ing Glastonbury.”
Honeymoon Period
Burnham has enjoyed a largely comfortable first two months in office, in contrast to his predecessor Keir Starmer, who seemed to stumble from one calamity to another from the moment he entered No 10. Burnham has benefited from a lack of scrutiny and has been largely left alone by rival leaders Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage.
In Burnham's words, this has given him “breathing space” to travel the country announcing policies such as capping bus fares at £2, help for pubs, and scrapping VAT on electricity bills, all delivered with social media flair.
Ukraine Visit
During his visit to Ukraine, Burnham reiterated Britain's support for the war-ravaged country. While some see the guitar performance as showing a cool, relaxed leader who brings light to a dark situation and defies Vladimir Putin, others are uneasy.
More than half a million Ukrainian citizens and soldiers have either died or been wounded since the conflict began, with millions of lives decimated. One experienced communications expert cautioned: “It was perhaps a PR stunt too far.” Burnham was playing chords from The Smiths' song “Rusholme Ruffians”.
Badenoch's Rome Meeting
Kemi Badenoch also had a tricky week on the publicity front. The Conservative leader was pictured having coffee with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome on Monday. A story in The Times claimed Meloni had urged Badenoch not to form a pact with Nigel Farage's Reform UK, but it turned out not to be entirely correct and the Italians were said to be furious.
Next week brings Burnham's first “proper” day as PM, a potentially heated PMQs, and Reform's party conference at Birmingham's NEC.
