‘Northern king’ Burnham savours chance to take Starmer’s crown
Leadership battle looms for Britain’s ruling, but deeply unpopular, Labour Party with the eyes of Manchester mayor firmly fixed on being prime minister in a country desperately crying out for change
The mayor of one of Britain’s biggest cities took the high-speed train from Beijing to Tianjin when visiting in 2018, and spoke highly of China’s innovation and development.
He pointed out that the 30-minute trip on the 73-mile (117km) line took the same time as “a rattling northern train” travelling just eight miles from Altrincham to Manchester in the UK.
“Railway passengers in the north of England deserve a service every bit as clean, comfortable and reliable as those travelling in northern China,” the official added.
The mayor, of Greater Manchester, was Andy Burnham. Now, eight years later, he appears to have booked himself an express ticket to become Britain’s next prime minister.
Burnham is leaving Manchester after almost a decade at the helm of the city and heading for Westminster on the back of a thumping by-election victory last week.
The election was triggered by the resignation of a Labour MP to allow Burnham to become a Member of Parliament – and clear the way for him to challenge the leadership of embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer.