After British Prime Minister Sturgeon announced her resignation, the Labour Party in the UK is about to elect a new party leader to take over as prime minister. According to the British newspaper The Guardian, as of July 13 local time, candidate Andy Burnham has received the support of 349 members of the House of Commons for the Labour Party. This has secured him the position of “only candidate,” and other potential candidates have failed to meet the required qualifications for the election.
According to the rules for electing the party leader, a candidate must receive nominations from 81 Labour Party members, including himself, between July 9th and 15th. Additionally, the candidate must obtain nominations from three Labour Party affiliated organizations, including at least two trade unions, by the evening of July 16th, in order to qualify for the leadership race.
British Labour MP Andy Burnam IC photo
There are currently 403 Labour MPs in the British House of Commons, and only 54 of them do not support Burnham. This includes Stamer and Shebana Mahmood, the Chair of the Labour National Executive Committee who is unable to run for election. This means that even if there are other potential candidates wishing to run, they cannot meet the electoral threshold, leaving Burnham as the sole candidate for the party leadership.
It is expected that the Labour Party will hold a general meeting on July 17 local time, where Bernam will be directly announced as the new party leader. He will take over from Sturgeon as the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Bernham was the former mayor of Greater Manchester, England. He has always advocated the nationalization of key public services and criticized the neoliberal economic policies for their numerous drawbacks. On the evening of the 13th, Bernham told Labour party members that he promised to form a ‘inclusive’ cabinet according to Labour traditions. The Labour party he leads will represent all factions within the party, demonstrating ‘contribution, experience, and dedication’.
