Chris Mason: Burnham is fifth PM in four years - now he'll try to buck the trend
Andy Burnham is set to become the UK's fifth prime minister in four years, succeeding Sir Keir Starmer. The transition marks a period of significant political churn, with Burnham aiming to differentiate his leadership style through more direct engagement with voters.
Why it matters
The rapid turnover of UK leadership reflects deep-seated political instability and shifting public sentiment in the post-Brexit era.
Image source, PA Media By Chris Mason Political editor Published 1 hour ago By lunchtime today, the UK will have its fifth prime minister in four years.
No other sentence can so pithily summarise the nature of British politics right now than that one.
In the summer of 2022 Boris Johnson was on his way out, but still in office. Since then there has been Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer.
Little wonder Andy Burnham will say later, we are told, that he is "acutely conscious" of this churn at the top. His critics, within the Labour Party and beyond it, may allow themselves a wry smile at that, given they would argue he has been agitating for this moment for ages.
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