Andy Burnham Tipped as UK PM: Gaza Policy Unlikely to
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- Andy Burnham is tipped to succeed Keir Starmer as UK prime minister after Starmer's resignation last week amid Labour Party pressure following disastrous May local elections.
- Labour lost more votes to the Green Party — which labels Israel an "apartheid" state and Gaza operations as "genocide" — than to Reform UK in the May local elections, per the article.
- Polling commissioned by Save the Children UK, Christian Aid, and Medical Aid for Palestinians found over 60% of Labour Party members dissatisfied with the government's Israel response, with the majority backing suspension of all UK arms exports to Israel.
- Patrick Diamond of Queen Mary University and Nimer Sultany of SOAS both predicted continuity in UK Israel policy under Burnham, with Sultany saying "we can expect continuity, not a break from current British policy."
- Burnham's record shows shifting positions over time: he visited the West Bank with Labour Friends of Palestine in 2012, joined Labour Friends of Israel in 2015, backed Palestinian statehood recognition that year, yet refused to describe Gaza as a "genocide" during the recent Makerfield by-election.
- Burnham signalled he would retain Shabana Mahmood as home secretary — including her proscription of Palestine Action as a "terrorist" organisation — a move Sultany called "a marker of continuity."
Why it matters: With over 60% of Labour members backing tougher measures on Israel — including suspending all UK arms exports — yet both cited experts predicting no policy shift, the leadership transition looks set to leave Gaza policy untouched even as Labour haemorrhaged votes to the Greens specifically over the issue.
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