LONDON – Britain’s new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has signalled his support for a written Constitution for the United Kingdom, which unlike most countries, does not have one authoritative document.
Since taking office just two weeks ago, the former mayor of Greater Manchester has made devolution of power to the regional authorities a focus of his administration.
“In the end, I think it does start to point towards a new constitutional settlement,” the 56-year-old said of his devolution plans at the weekend.
Calling for a “new clear set of principles about how this country should be run”, he said there was a need for a written Constitution – something he has called for before he became prime minister.
“It’s wrong that people are left arguing for things that are just fundamental… and the lack of a Constitution disempowers places in that situation,” said Burnham.
Unlike most countries around the world, Britain does not have a written Constitution, and is instead governed by a patchwork of statutes, common law judgments, and treaties.
The push for a written Constitution is fairly recent, with the Labour Party’s Gordon Brown, who was prime minister from 2007 to 2010, an early proponent of the overhaul.
Burnham served as a minister in Brown’s government.
A parliamentary committee considered options for codifying the Constitution in a five-year review, which concluded in 2015 that there was no clear consensus.
Any serious attempt to codify the Constitution by Burnham would be a years-long process likely requiring a major public inquiry and consultations.
Burnham on July 31 announced plans to allow regional mayors in England to keep a share of taxes collected in their area, part of his drive to transfer power out of the highly centralised nation’s capital.
The UK – comprising England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – saw significant constitutional reforms in the late 1990s that created devolved Parliaments in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
But England itself remains one of Europe’s most centralised nations, despite the creation of some regional mayors and other bodies in the last decade, experts say.
Meanwhile, Burnham congratulated his successor as Greater Manchester Mayor Bev Craig after Labour comfortably retained the post on July 31, following an election triggered by his return to Parliament.
“You are the right person to lead this great city region forward into its best decade ever,” he said on Aug 1 at a victory event in the northern English city.
Craig, currently the leader of Manchester City Council, was elected in a second round of counting after winning 47.15 per cent of the votes in the first round, just shy of the 50 per cent needed to win outright.
The anti-immigration Reform UK party, which has been riding high in national polls, came in second with 21 per cent.
More than two million people were eligible to vote in the election but turnout was just under 25 per cent, according to the published results.
Burnham first won the post in 2017 and was re-elected twice, most recently in 2024 with 63 per cent of the vote.
His staunch defence of the region earned him the nickname “King of the North”. AFP
