How will Andy Burnham approach Trump, Ukraine and other world affairs? | Global News Podcast

Welcome to the Global News podcast here. on YouTube. I'm Valerie Sanderson and. I'm joined by our political. correspondent Rob Watson. This is a very. big week, isn't it, for British. politics. Keir Starmer making likely his. last appearance in Parliament as Prime. Minister and his likely successor Andy. Burnham is being grilled by members of. his Labour Party about what he'll do. once in office and that's expected. within days. So, what will Andy. Burnham's priorities be on the world.

stage? >> I think when it comes to foreign policy, I think continuity much more than than. radical change. I mean, I know that. doesn't sound very sexy, but I think it. is important to be straightforward about. this and to say that that British. foreign policy is very much driven by. our history, by our geography, by the. country's interests, by events, of. course, things like Russian invasion of. Ukraine, but there are these kind of. solid drivers. So, I think expect to see. the same kind of of world view from from.

Andy Burnham as we've had from Keir. Starmer. And important to remember that. as far as we know, Andy Burnham is going. to be keeping absolutely key and senior. members of Britain's foreign policy. team, the team that existed under Keir. Starmer. So, those priorities are free. trade, trying to somehow maintain good. relations with the United States given. the current incumbent of the White. House, trying to draw, continue that. sort of process of repairing, if you. like, the damage in EU-UK relations.

since Brexit. And and essentially being. a champion, as Keir Starmer has been, for Britain's belief in the sort of. international rule of law, multinational. organizations like NATO and the United. Nations. >> Well, you mentioned President Trump and. he views Andy Burnham, I think, as. extremely liberal is what he says. So, it's going to be quite a tricky one for. Andy Burnham, isn't it? >> It is, but I mean, I guess you could say. uh Keir Starmer, you couldn't get much. more liberal than Keir Starmer in the.

view of many in in the White House. I. mean, he was formerly a human rights. lawyer. I mean, that's pretty pretty. liberal, Valerie. Pretty pretty liberal. So, you know, it will be an odd. combination. I think people thought that. uh people thought that Keir Starmer and. Donald Trump would be an odd. combination. People thought that Theresa. May and and Donald Trump would be an odd. combination. That that really was. That. did look very very strained. But, you. know, Britain's interests are what will. be uppermost in Andy Burnham's mind and.

you know, it will be the same for him as. it was for Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak. that, you know, Britain must have a. close relationship with the United. States. It is the UK's most important. trade partner, most important security. partner. I mean, will will there be a. few sparks? Will you know. may may Andy Burnham speak in a way that. perhaps Keir Starmer hasn't. He's been. very restrained when talking about. Donald Trump. Who knows? But, I don't. think the fundamentals are going to. change very much. >> And what about the relationship with the.

EU? They're concerned, aren't they, about Britain fulfilling its promises. about increasing defense spending? >> Yes, they are concerned. Not just the. EU, but Britain's NATO partners, including, of course, the United States. And I think it's worth pointing out, by. the way, Valerie, that plenty of people. in Britain's defense establishment, whether that's in the armed forces or in. defense manufacturing, are also worried. as to exactly how Britain is going to. keep these promises to increase very.

significantly defense spending in in the. decade ahead. And as so far, Andy. Burnham has endorsed that idea of. increased defense spending. But, exactly. as with the Keir Starmer government, exactly how Britain is going to get. there in the next 10 years, whether it. will raise extra taxes, whether it will. cut other bits of public spending, a lot. of those difficult decisions still lie. ahead. >> And what about Andy Burnham's attitude. to Britain's relationship with the EU.

itself? >> Well, well again, I hate to be the. continuity ball, Valerie, but you. like Kier Starmer, he was very much. remainer. He campaigned for remain in. 2016. Very much like Sir Kier Starmer, he's on the record of saying that he. thinks Brexit was a was a big mistake. for Britain economically and. diplomatically. But he has also said recently that while. it has done damage to the British. economy, he doesn't think that it's. helpful to reopen that whole sort debate. about the referendum and whether Britain.

should rejoin. I mean one one should. point out that about a year ago, he did. say that he hoped that in his lifetime. Britain would rejoin the European Union. But since then, as politicians often do, Valerie, he's somewhat changed his tune. because he's rather worried about. upsetting leave voters who used to vote. labor. But I mean in broader terms to. get to the sort of knob of your question. briefly, I think he will continue the. work of Kier Starmer and that is to get. Britain close to the European Union in.

terms of trade and security. But in a. limited way and and that limit those red. lines that Britain has of not joining. the two rejoining the two main. institutions, what really makes the EU. what it is, namely that the single. market hugely important or its customs. union. >> And what about Andy Burnham's attitude. to Ukraine because Ukraine is apparently. worried about political instability here. in the UK and what it means for support.

for their war against Russia? >> I don't think the Ukrainians need to be. too worried about that because when it. comes to foreign policy challenges, it. is just about the Ukraine the only thing. that carries cross-party support in the. UK and certainly carries support with. with British voters. So, I think of all. the areas of foreign policy, that's. probably the one where you would see. absolutely the least change because Andy. Burnham has pledged his support for. Ukraine for for its continued as they.

would see it resistance to to the. Russian invasion, and that is shared. pretty much entirely across the. political spectrum. Now, the more. complicated issue is how will he manage. President Trump and trying to keep. President Trump and the United States. administration engaged with with helping. with Ukraine's defense. And of course, how will Britain continue to fund. supplying military aid and other. material support for Ukraine. But but. actually, the broad thrust, you know, is.

Andy Burnham as keen as Keir Starmer was. that Ukraine should survive, and is that. support pretty rock solid behind him. across the country? Absolutely, it is. >> So, Keir Starmer, he's on a diplomatic. blitz, isn't he, in Paris at the moment? How do you think he's fared as an. international statesman? Do you think. he's done that better than the way he's. regarded at home? >> Well, I mean, that's certainly what his. supporters would say, that if you if you. were to sort of tot up the score on Keir.

Starmer, they would probably concede. that as a as a domestic politician, he. has squandered the gigantic majority. that he won in July 2024. Well, he'd been a domestic failure, deeply unpopular, but that he had had. foreign policy successes in terms of. managing the UK's relationship with the. United States and with Donald Trump when. it comes to issues like tariffs. Keir Starmer himself. often praises himself for having kept. Britain out of the war between the. United States, Iran, and Israel. And he.

would say he'd been quietly working to. restore British relations with the. European Union, and to sort of restore, as he would see. it, Britain's standing on the. international stage as a supporter of. international norms and institutions. like the UN. So, I guess not not. entirely unusually in recent British. history, Valarie, he has become, you. know, more more popular with fellow. fellow heads of governments and heads of. states than he has been with his own.

voters, but, you know, that's hardly. unusual in British politics or indeed. the politics of other democracies. >> And talking about the world stage, how. important is a change of British Prime. Minister? >> It is a very good question and you know, I was talking not that long ago with an. incredibly sort of senior figure. formerly from from British diplomacy, someone who had a key role in many of. Britain's big foreign policy challenges. And this person said to me, I wonder how much it actually matters.

when we have a change in Prime Minister. given that Britain is no longer a member. of the European Union. In other words, this ex-diplomat was making the case. that Britain had been weakened on the. world stage, that it had somehow removed. one of its key tools from its foreign. policy basket. And I mean, I don't think anyone would. deny that the outside world has been. looking in on Britain's sort of domestic. political tribulations these last 10. years or so. And I think it's just a.

sort of a statement of facts, isn't it, that countries which don't look. massively united and prosperous at home. clearly carry less clout on the. international stage. I mean, I think you. have to be careful about overstating. that. Britain still has, you know, a. very large economy, one of the top 10 in. the world. It still has some pretty. efficient armed forces. It has very. impressive intelligence agencies. And of course, it has a seat at the top. table in many organizations, particularly one thinks of its seat on.

the UN Security Council. But I mean, you. know, has, you know, does does. Andy Burnham inherit, you know, the. leadership of a country absolutely kind. of widely regarded around the world in. perhaps the same way it was 10-15 years. ago. Possibly not. >> And do you think actually he will be. very much preoccupied with domestic. matters, particularly the economy, than. than striding across the world stage as. an international statesman? >> I guess the answer to that, Val, is if. he has any say in it, he will. But I.

mean, I guess as Kier Starmer pointed. out in previous prime ministers, you. don't really get a choice. I mean, if. you're a country with a high profile. like the UK, and if you're very much. exposed to the world in terms of trade. and security, if if stuff happens, you. just have to deal with that because that. does affect the living conditions of. your voters and your citizens. But. absolutely, I have no doubt that Andy Burnham will. try to prioritize turning around I guess. what you would call this rather gloomy. mood which has descended on Britain.

these last 10 years. So, you have one of. those interesting lines in one of Andy. Burnham's speeches recently where he. talks about, you know, restoring hope in. every hard heart and growth in every. postcode. This is sort of idea that, you. know, we all need to cheer up and we. need to have growth everywhere. So, there's no doubt that will be his. absolute priority. Whether he's allowed. to do that, I mean, who knows. And just. sort of one final thought on that. because we've been talking a lot about. foreign policy. You know, in the end,

all politics is local in the sense that. what really drives British prime. ministers, and I'm sure Andy Burnham. will be no different, is number one, how. on earth do you keep your own MPs and. activists happy from one Saturday to the. next. And the other thing that prime. ministers always have an eye on is the. next election and winning it. So, yes, the world won't go away, but do. politicians tend to focus on, you know, who casts votes for them and who. supports them in Parliament? You betcha.

>> Thanks, Rob. That was Rob Watson, our. political correspondent. If you'd like. to find out more about this story, listen to the Global News Podcast. Just. click on the link below. But that's it. from this edition of the Global News. Podcast here on YouTube. Thanks for. listening, thanks for watching, and bye. for now.