Just 12% of Britons believe that Burnham would be a worse prime minister than Starmer
Key takeaways
- 40% of 2024 Labour voters believe Andy Burnham would be a better PM than Keir Starmer, compared to 10% who believe he would be worse
- 34% of Britons have a favourable opinion of Burnham, up five points since December, relative to 20% seeing Starmer positively
- 47% of Britons, including 38% of Labour voters, believe it would be good for the country if Starmer was replaced as prime minister and Labour leader
- Britons tend to believe Labour made the wrong decision to block Burnham’s candidacy for the Gorton and Denton by-election by 44% to 12%
After months of rumours that Andy Burnham was plotting a Westminster return with the intention of replacing Keir Starmer as prime minister, the Gorton and Denton by-election announced last week finally presented the Greater Manchester mayor with an opportunity on his home turf to mount a comeback.
But the opportunity was short-lived, with Burnham’s application to be Labour’s candidate in the by-election swiftly blocked by Labour’s national executive committee. Nonetheless, what do the public think about the prospect of a Burnham premiership?
There is sizeable support for a change at Number 10. Nearly half of Britons (47%) believe it would be a good thing for the country if Starmer was replaced as prime minister and Labour leader, relative to just 26% who feel it would be a bad thing.
This includes Labour voters being divided 38% to 36% on whether it would be in the best interests of the country to replace the prime minister they elected just over 18 months ago.
Burnham stands out among senior Labour figures in terms of personal popularity. A third of Britons (34%) have a favourable opinion of the Manchester mayor, a five point increase since December, relative to 26% seeing him in a negative light, giving Burnham a rare positive net favourability rating of +8.
This compares to just 20% of the public seeing Keir Starmer favourably; 71% see the prime minister unfavourably, leaving him with a net favourability rating of -51.
Such a difference is also apparent among Labour voters themselves, with those who backed the party at the last election seeing Burnham positively by 54% to 13%, but Starmer negatively by 51% to 42%.
And it’s not just that Burnham is more popular than Starmer. Three in ten Britons (30%) believe that he would make a better prime minister than Number 10’s current occupant, relative to just 12% who feel he would do a worse job. A further fifth (21%) think such a switch would make no real difference.
This isn’t just a case of the grass always being greener, as the public are more likely to believe the other leadership contenders polled would do a worse job than Starmer than think they would do a better job, be that Angela Rayner (37% to 12%), Shabana Mahmood (22% to 8%) or Wes Streeting (19% to 12%).
Four in ten 2024 Labour voters (40%) believe Burnham would do a better job as prime minister than Starmer, relative to 19% feeling he would be about the same and 10% who feel he would do a worse job. It also compares to just 22% believing Angela Rayner would do a better job than Starmer, with 12% believing so of Wes Streeting and 6% of Shabana Mahmood.
As such, it is perhaps unsurprising that the public tend to believe Labour made the wrong decision in blocking Burnham’s application. Just 12% of Britons feel they made the right call, relative to 44% thinking the party made a mistake. A further 43%, though, are unsure of what to make of the decision.
Opinion among Labour voters themselves does not particular differ from the public as a whole, with just 16% believing the party they backed in 2024 made the right decision on this, while 46% feel Labour made the wrong call.
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Photo: Getty
