By The Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester and new leader of the Labour Party, is taking the final steps on Monday to succeed Keir Starmer and become Britain’s seventh prime minister in a decade.
The affable Burnham returned to Parliament in June by winning a risky special election and was sworn in as a member on July 12, hours after the unpopular Starmer announced his resignation to end a tenure of just two years in office.
Starmer will travel the mile from Downing Street to Buckingham Palace to formally tell King Charles III that he is resigning.
Soon after, the 56-year-old Burnham will go to the palace and Charles will ask him to form a government. That is when he will officially become prime minister, a moment known as “kissing hands.”
Here is the latest:
What will happen at Buckingham Palace
Andy Burnham has been U.K. leader in waiting for the past week. But he does not become prime minister until King Charles says so.
That will happen today at Buckingham Palace in an exchange that embodies the fact that in this parliamentary democracy, the right to govern is still derived from royal authority.
The ceremony harkens back to a time when the king exercised supreme power and chose his preeminent minister, the prime minister, to run his government.
That has changed, of course. Modern Britain is a constitutional monarchy where the king’s powers are strictly limited by law and tradition. But centuries after real power was transferred to the elected House of Commons, many things retain echoes of the past.
One of those is the moment when the king formally asks a politician selected by his or her party to form the next government.
How Britain got to this point
Britain got its most recent prime minister just two years ago, when Keir Starmer led the Labour Party to a landslide election victory.
Starmer’s honeymoon was short-lived. A series of missteps and policy U-turns saw public support drain away. After dire local election results in May, the Labour Party took the nuclear option and forced him to resign.
Britain’s parliamentary democracy allows governing parties to change leaders midterm, with the winner becoming prime minister without the need for a general election.
The next national election does not have to be held until 2029, five years from the last election in 2024, though Burnham can call one sooner if he wants.
Get ready to meet the chief mouser
Before the day is over, Andy Burnham is likely to encounter Larry the cat, the most famous permanent resident of No. 10 Downing Street.
The gray and white tabby has lived at the prime minister’s residence since 2011, surviving six of Burnham’s predecessors.
A one-time stray adopted to help combat a rodent problem, Larry now regally patrols Downing Street, often appearing just as visiting dignitaries arrive.
He already has been seen Monday morning, the center of attention in front of the polished black door.
Larry is the most stable thing in British politics, said photographer Justin Ng, one of the cat’s most frequent chroniclers.
″(He’s) like the night watchman of Downing Street,’’ Ng said. “He’s looking out, looking out for people. People are reassured (by) his presence that things will carry on.
These days Larry has his own profile on the government website and more than 900,000 followers on X. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte recently stopped to say hello, but all leaders hope to be seen by his side.
Now he just has to win over Burnham’s dog, Axel. No problem, right?
It’s moving day at Downing Street
It’s a day of action at Downing Street, the British prime minister’s official residence.
Departing leader Keir Starmer will give a short farewell speech before going to Buckingham Palace to tender his resignation to King Charles III. The king will then invite new Labour Party leader Andy Burnham to the palace and ask him to form a government.
Burnham will then address the nation for the first time as prime minister in front of the famous black door of 10 Downing St.
Labour is hoping Burnham’s arrival will signal an end to the rapid turnover of U.K. leaders. He will be the country’s seventh prime minister since 2016.
