London, United Kingdom. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he would always put Britain’s interests first when asked whether he would be prepared to challenge US President Donald Trump.
In his first major interview since taking office, Burnham also ruled out holding a general election before 2029 and said he was committed to defence pledges made to NATO partners.
Relations with the United States
Burnham made the comments in an interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, parts of which were released on Sunday.
Asked whether he would call out Trump if he believed it was necessary, Burnham said all leaders had to defend their national interests.
“All leaders have to do that. You have to defend your own national interest before anything else. That’s what you’re required to do if you’re to do this job properly,” he said.
His predecessor, Keir Starmer, announced last month that he was stepping down after a fraught relationship with Trump, who criticised him over differences concerning the US-Israeli war on Iran, immigration, energy and technology regulation.
Trump initially described Burnham as “extremely liberal” but said this week that he had had a “very good conversation” with him. Burnham became Britain’s seventh prime minister in a decade on Monday.
Election timetable
Burnham said he would not seek an early general election.
“I’m going to rule it out. Yeah, there’s no early general election. I don’t think people want it,” he said.
Defence funding
On national defence, Burnham said he was “absolutely committed” to the promises made to NATO allies.
“The first challenge facing us both is to ensure that the defence investment plan is fully funded, and that’s the thing that’s right in front of us, and we need to work that through as we go towards the budget later this year,” he said.
Burnham’s newly appointed Chancellor, John Healey, resigned as defence minister in the previous government after stating that Britain would not be safe unless it committed to spending 3% of gross domestic product on defence by 2030.