Arabic version: برنهام يستبعد إجراء انتخابات عامة مبكرة

According to BBC News, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he is not tempted to call an early general election and that there will be no poll “anytime soon”.

Burnham said his priority was helping people with the cost of living and supporting businesses with their running costs. He said he did not want to put the country into a “backward-looking process” in which people were arguing among themselves again.

Asked by ITV Calendar whether the next election would be in 2029, he replied: “Yes, that’s when the next election will be.” He added that he could “knock dead” speculation about an early election. The next general election must be held by August 2029.

Recent polling has suggested Labour’s position has improved since Burnham replaced Sir Keir Starmer in Downing Street in July, although Reform UK and the Conservatives are not far behind. An early election could have given Burnham a mandate of his own and released him from commitments in Labour’s 2024 manifesto.

Speaking before his first Labour Party conference as prime minister, to be held in Liverpool, Burnham also said he wanted people to feel “a bit of hope in their lives again”. He said he would use the conference to set out more about the direction he wants to take the country.

On small-boat crossings of the English Channel, Burnham said he did not want to see any crossings at all. After 781 people arrived in 10 boats on Wednesday, the highest single-day total so far this year, he said the government would not stop working until crossings went “right down”.