Lammy says he would have “liked” to bag a job in the new Cabinet, but Burnham was having none of it:
“It has been the greatest privilege of my life, coming from humble beginnings in Tottenham, to serve in government as Foreign Secretary, Justice Secretary and Britain’s first Black Deputy Prime Minister.
I am immensely proud of what we achieved, in Opposition and in Government. As Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister, I helped rebuild Britain’s relationships with our European allies after the catastrophic Brexit years, stood steadfastly with Ukraine in its darkest hours, championed a new partnership of equals with the Global South and was proud to play a leading role in Britain’s recognition of the State of Palestine. I worked to secure the Special Relationship with the United States in a new era and deepened our partnerships with the Gulf and India to deliver trade, growth and security for the British people.
As Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor, I put record investment in our courts to begin stabilising the backlog for victims left waiting too long for justice, put in changes to take our prisons back from the brink to prevent a collapse in prison capacity ever again, put massive investment in the probation service and victims and helped deliver the Hillsborough Law.
I also put in place a new approach to improving the diversity of our judiciary and made the Ministry of Justice a Whitehall leader in harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence.
I would have been proud to continue serving in Cabinet. But a new Prime Minister is entitled to build his own team, and I wish Andy Burnham and the new Cabinet every success.
I will continue to serve the great people of Tottenham, support this Labour government from the backbenches and do everything I can to help defeat Reform again at the next general election.”
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Tom Baldwin, author of Starmer’s hagiography, spoke to Times Radio:
Tom Baldwin: “I think he’d like to do something. He’s very dutiful and driven by service. That’s why he came into politics. I think that’s characterised his time as prime minister. He hasn’t always sought popularity or been good at being popular. But I think he has some of the necessary qualities that we actually do want in a prime minister. That resilience, that relentlessness, that ability to carry the weight and the job really does weigh very heavily on people and he carries that weight very, very well.”
Jo Coburn: “NATO Secretary-General?”
Tom Baldwin: “I think that’s something that he would be interested in. I think it probably requires Andy Burnham’s government to support him in that and these are some of the questions which Andy Burnham has to resolve quite quickly.”