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Britain's new Prime Minister Andy Burnham speaks to staff and media at 10 Downing Street in London, Monday, July 20, 2026.

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Andy Burnham becomes the UK's seventh prime minister in a decade after Starmer resigns

Andy Burnham becomes the UK's seventh prime minister in a decade after Starmer resigns

Andy Burnham has taken office as Britain’s new prime minister. He promised Monday to undertake a 10-year plan to restore political stability and revive the economy while acknowledging that six other U.K. leaders have tried and failed to do so in the past decade. Speaking outside 10 Downing St. minutes after being formally appointed by King Charles III, Burnham pledged to ease the cost of living for ordinary people, decentralize political power, revitalize industry and end street sleeping by homeless people. He said he would deliver a “circuit breaker” for a system that has taken wrong turns since the 1980s, when public services and utilities were privatized and local government eroded.

Britain's new prime minister must solve the old riddle of how to reinvigorate a slow-growing economy

Britain's new prime minister must solve the old riddle of how to reinvigorate a slow-growing economy

Britain’s new leader, Andy Burnham, is facing the same old problem: How can he kickstart a sluggish economy so that growing companies and increased output generate enough additional revenue to boost defense spending and pay for everything else voters want without raising taxes? It’s a question that has bedeviled every prime minister since the financial crisis of 2008. And their failure to find an answer is a big part of the reason that the men and women who have taken up residence behind the famous black door at 10 Downing Street in that period have had an average tenure of two years.