World Eyes Rise Of Socialism As New U.K. Prime Minister Takes Power

Self-described socialist Andy Burnham promised to establish a “new economic model” as he officially became the prime minister of the United Kingdom on Monday. 

Burnham said in his first speech as prime minister that he would seek to implement a “new economic model” and make politics more “collaborative.” Becoming the seventh prime minister since 2016, Burnham said he hopes to bring stability to the United Kingdom.

“Britain needs to show the world that we can regain our stability once again. And that is our challenge, to make politics work, to make it work better. I know people at home are fed up with politics. I hear you, and I want to be honest with you. We have not been good enough, and we need to be better,” Burnham said. “We will be. We will make this moment a circuit breaker for Britain, bringing forward the biggest changes in the last 40 years, a new political model, and a new economic model.”

Burnham criticized policies made in the 1980s when he said that Britain “took some wrong turns.”

“Political power was centralized, economic power privatized, large parts of the country de-industrialized, and they still haven’t recovered,” he said. “Many feel as if they are still in decline and they don’t have the ability to turn things around. And that’s why we will change politics. To make it more collaborative, more about problem solving than point scoring.”

Burnham, the latest socialist politician to come to power, said he would “build a new economy, where we put life’s essentials back under stronger public control to make them affordable to you again” and claimed he would implement policies to reduce the cost of living. 

The 56-year-old former mayor of Greater Manchester has said he wants the government to take “greater public control” of water and electricity and wants more funding for “affordable” housing. 

Burnham’s road to becoming prime minister opened up last month after he won a seat in parliament and then secured the support of the Labour Party last week. He replaces Keir Starmer, who faced increasing pressure to step down amid scrutiny over the United Kingdom’s poor economy and cabinet ties to Jeffrey Epstein. 

President Donald Trump noted Sunday that Burnham has said he would open up the North Sea for oil drilling. 

“The People of Aberdeen, in Scotland, are dancing in the streets because the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has stated that he will be opening up, all the way, the invaluable North Sea Oil! It is one of the Greatest Sources of quality Oil on Earth, has hundreds of years of Capacity left, with much not even found yet, and will make the United Kingdom, from a Poverty Stricken Disaster, to one of the Richest Countries anywhere in the World!” Trump said. 

Burnham has previously been critical of Trump claiming that he brought “instability” to the world and said during the January 6 riot that “any U.K. politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now.”

The rise of the self-described “business-friendly socialist” to power in the United Kingdom comes as far-Left socialists have made waves in recent elections in the United States, most prominently in New York City.