Andrew Murray Burnham (born 7 January 1970) is a British politician serving as the Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017. He is a member of the Labour and Co-operative Party and previously served as the MP for Leigh from 2001 until 2017.
๐ Early Life and Education
Burnham was born in Aintree, a suburb of Liverpool, and raised in Culcheth, Cheshire. He attended St Aelredโs Catholic High School and joined the Labour Party at age 15.
He studied at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, and later worked as a researcher for Tessa Jowell. He also served as a parliamentary officer for the NHS Confederation and as an administrator with the Football Task Force.
๐๏ธ Parliamentary Career
Burnham was elected MP for Leigh in 2001 and served as a Parliamentary private secretary from 2003 to 2005. He was promoted by Tony Blair to Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department after the 2005 election.
In 2006, he became Minister of State for Health. Under Gordon Brown, he served as Chief Secretary to the Treasury (2007โ2008), Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (2008โ2009), and Secretary of State for Health (2009โ2010).
๐ฅ Health Secretary and Leadership Bids
As Health Secretary, Burnham responded to the swine flu pandemic and launched an independent inquiry into the Stafford Hospital scandal. He proposed a National Care Service, which was later scrapped by the Coalition government.
After the 2010 election, Burnham finished fourth in the Labour leadership election won by Ed Miliband. He finished second in the 2015 leadership election behind Jeremy Corbyn.
๐๏ธ Mayor of Greater Manchester
Burnham won the 2017 mayoral election and was re-elected in 2021 and 2024. As Mayor, he implemented reforms to public transport, taking buses back into local control and creating the Bee Network.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he campaigned for more furlough funding for Northern communities. In 2026, his candidacy for a by-election was blocked by the Labour Partyโs National Executive Committee.
| Year | Role | Key Event | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | MP for Leigh | Elected to Parliament | Majority of 16,362 |
| 2007โ2008 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury | Helped write 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review | Promoted to Culture Secretary |
| 2009โ2010 | Secretary of State for Health | Launched Stafford Hospital inquiry | Proposed National Care Service |
| 2017 | Mayor of Greater Manchester | Won first mayoral election | Re-elected in 2021 and 2024 |