It took just seven days in office for Andy Burnham to meet his first world leader. As he welcomed Volodymyr Zelenskyy to a naval base in Portsmouth on Monday, the new prime minister told the Ukrainian president it was “no accident” he was his first international visitor since entering No 10.
“It is intended to send a very clear message,” Burnham told him. “We are with Ukraine 100%, I am personally with you 100%, and I will honour every commitment this country has made to Ukraine in full.” In short, the UK’s support for Kyiv would continue despite the change in leadership.
For Keir Starmer, the relationship with Zelenskyy became one of the defining ones of his premiership. He visited Ukraine four times over his two years in office, inviting the Ukrainian president back to the UK on another four occasions. They also met regularly at international summits.
In a symbolic move, Starmer travelled to Ukraine during his final week in office, receiving the order of freedom medal for his role leading the coalition of the willing and helping to persuade Donald Trump back to the table on Ukraine after he flirted with siding with Putin.
But over the course of his premiership, the former Labour leader faced accusations of spending too much time on international issues instead of domestic ones, with his critics nicknaming him “never here Keir” and even his own Downing Street team complaining that he “needs to get off a plane”.
Burnham, in contrast, has always been clear he would prioritise what was happening at home, reflecting his own political instincts as well as his wariness of not falling into the same trap as his predecessor. But it led some in the Labour party to worry that he would be unprepared for the global stage.
“It’s a frustrating characterisation because not many incoming prime ministers, including Keir, have any experience of international affairs,” one of his inner circle said. “Andy has said that his priority will be domestic, but of course there will be moments where he’ll need to be more outward facing.”
Day to day, Burnham’s allies have suggested that he will rely on delegating responsibility to his team – including his foreign secretary in Ed Miliband and senior diplomatic adviser in Jonathan Powell, whom he persuaded to stay on in No 10 from the Starmer administration.
Labour MPs point out that Yvette Cooper, Miliband’s predecessor, was often left fighting for influence as there were so many other senior figures who saw themselves as the de facto foreign secretary, including the deputy prime minister, David Lammy, Powell, and Starmer himself.
One senior MP said: “I suspect that Ed may be in a fortunate position where he is actually given more freedom than other foreign secretaries in the past. As long as Ed is known to have the authority of the PM and to be trusted to speak for him, then this may be his moment.”
Other Labour figures suggested that strong prime ministers should be able to delegate and rely on their teams. One said: “I don’t think Andy is particularly interested in foreign affairs. He’ll need to front some things up, but as long as he’s well briefed and charming, he doesn’t need to make the day-to-day decisions like Keir did.”
But they warned there would inevitably be moments where complex international issues “crash land” on UK domestic policy – as Starmer found to his cost when dealing with Trump – and he would have no choice but to intervene.
after newsletter promotion
Burnham has already indicated he will not shy away from standing up to the US president. “Obviously, the relationship is important to the UK, but not to the point where we just go along with anything that they say,” he told the Guardian last month.
There are some with experience of foreign affairs in government who believe that Starmer has already done the hard yards on foreign policy – on Ukraine, the European Union and the US in particular – so Burnham just has to stick to the same course.
In his final interview in office, Starmer told his successor that he should not spend less time focusing on international affairs, in order to prioritise the situation at home. “It’s not sensible to think you can just separate these two things out,” he said.
“If you’re PM and you care what bills are going to be like in any household around the country, you have to care about finding a lasting solution to the situation in Ukraine, you have to care about what happens in the strait of Hormuz.”
But those around Burnham believe he can better balance them. At least for now. They have been watching events in Iran closely, mindful of the potential to cause yet more global economic upheaval should Trump take further action.
“Andy has a bit of space now to prioritise policy at home – but it could all be blown off course by Iran,” one Foreign Office insider said. “He has to seize this moment to talk about the domestic, because this window might not come again.”
