At the time of writing, Andy Burnham is preparing to move into Downing Street, following the resignation of Keir Starmer, the much-loathed former prime minister.

[Originally published at communist.red]

With nobody challenging Burnham for the Labour leadership position, the newly-elected MP for Makerfield will face a coronation, becoming the seventh UK PM in the space of a decade.

But which Burnham will the British public get? This veritable chameleon has lived many lives during the course of his political career: playing different parts, wearing various masks, and assuming an assortment of outfits— always dressing to fit the occasion.In the New Labour years, Burnham was a Blairite loyalist: voting for the Iraq War, and overseeing the privatization of the NHS. In 2010, when he first stood to be Labour leader, he proudly defended the record of Blair and Brown’s governments.

By contrast, when he ran again in 2015, he leant to the left, courting the union vote. As mayor of Greater Manchester, meanwhile, he carefully cultivated a “man of the people” persona—earning the moniker of “King of the North” during the pandemic for seemingly taking a stand against Boris Johnson’s out-of-touch Tories.

Today, as he prepares to ascend to the throne in Westminster, Britain’s latest leader is pledging to be all things to all people; saying whatever he needs to in order to get his grubby mitts on the keys to Number 10.

So the question of the hour is: what face will voters see in the months ahead, as the country’s new premier seeks to juggle the manifold crisis of British capitalism?

Government of crisis

Burnham’s predecessor, “Sir” Keir Starmer, had a cunning plan: break no promises by making no promises. But even this hollow strategy quickly came unstuck, as a mound of insoluble problems mounted atop of his beleaguered government.

There was no honeymoon period for the Labour leaders following their 2024 general election victory, as they presided over a government of crisis from day one.

From budgetary black holes, to racist riots, to scandals and sleaze over corporate freebies: Starmer’s government quickly proved to be no different or better than the succession of crisis-ridden Tory administrations that had come before.

And as the turmoil globally intensified, and British capitalism continued in its decay and decline, the situation facing Starmer only worsened.

Watching Starmer’s demise—and that of Cameron, May, Johnson, Truss, and Sunak before him—Burnham has adopted a different approach. / Image: valentinapazhux

It wasn’t long, therefore, before the ex-PM was being battered from all sides: falling out of favor with Trump, despite his endless fawning and grovelling; losing control of his parliamentary party, as he struggled to implement the cuts demanded by the capitalists; and plummeting in the polls, with the Mandelson-Epstein affair and a disastrous performance in the May elections proving to be the final straw for voters and Labour MPs alike.

Smelling a rat

Watching Starmer’s demise—and that of Cameron, May, Johnson, Truss, and Sunak before him—Burnham has adopted a different approach. Rather than saying little and delivering even less, the incoming prime minister is deliberately being as vague as possible about his potential program and policies in power.

One minute Burnham is asserting that the government should not be “in hock to the bond markets”; the next he is backtracking in an effort to appease the bankers—saying he will balance the budget and stick to the “fiscal rules” laid out by the previous Labour leaders.

To ordinary workers, he offers more social housing and investment in “left-behind” regions; to Britain’s military chiefs, meanwhile, he pledges billions for the country’s dilapidated armed forces.

One moment he is distancing himself from the establishment’s divisive culture war; the next, he is backing “reforms” to immigration that seek to scapegoat those fleeing to the UK’s shores, in the hope of escaping the hell that capitalism has created in their homelands.

Workers and youth aren’t stupid, however. The British public has experienced enough political charlatans and liars in recent years to smell a rat from afar.

Most people can therefore already see through Burnham, and can tell that he isn’t anything but a more casually-dressed Starmer. And the expected appointment of Shabana Mahmood as Chancellor confirms their suspicions.

Shipwrecked and sunk

It is clear that Burnham’s precarious balancing act won’t last for long.

Already, the interests of the elites and the imperialists, on one side, and the needs of the exploited and the oppressed, on the other, are clashing up against each other.

And like Starmer before him, Burnham will quickly find himself ground between these two millstones; caught between the hammer of the markets and the anvil of the working class.

Soon enough, Burnham’s government will smash up against the rocks of capitalist crisis, just as Starmer did within two years of taking over the helm of British capitalism—shipwrecked and sunk by the stormy waters and tumultuous tempests of conflict, chaos, and class struggle.

This, in turn, will fuel an even greater hatred and distrust towards the establishment; a fiercer anger and resentment in the status quo; and a sharper political polarization in society, pushing larger layers into the arms of reactionary demagogues like Farage.

Overthrow this circus!

Unfortunately, the leaders of the “left” and the trade unions are doing nothing to prepare for this perspective.

Instead of fighting for a real—socialist—alternative to capitalism and its crises, they are busy sowing illusions in Burnham: placing workers’ fates in the hands of this proven careerist; fostering false hopes in this wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Workers and youth must have no trust in Burnham and his ilk. Having climbed his way to the top of the greasy pole, this Janus-faced opportunist will have no qualms in carrying out the demands of the ruling class—doing whatever it takes to save their system and cling onto power.

Our task is to build a revolutionary leadership that can offer a genuine way out of the present impasse, by overthrowing this whole capitalist circus, and all the clowns who act on its behalf.

Join us in this vital endeavor. Join the fight for revolution. Join the communists of the RCP.