Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves leaves 11 Downing Street on the day she is to deliver the Mais Lecture, in London, Britain, March 17. [Photo/Agencies]
The increasingly inevitable-looking appointment of Andy Burnham as the next prime minister of the United Kingdom and leader of the governing Labour Party has moved a step closer after one of the party's current leading lights gave him her backing.
Rachel Reeves was appointed as the first female holder of the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer, or finance minister, by Keir Starmer following Labour's general election victory in July 2024.
But with Starmer having bowed to internal pressure at the start of this week and announcing his resignation as prime minister, rival candidates have stepped aside, leaving Burnham, a former health minister, a seemingly unhindered path to the top job.
It has already been reported that, should he assume power, Burnham would replace Reeves, and Reeves told the BBC that, regardless of what happened to her, he had her approval.
