Will Andy Burnham Find Prime Minister’s Questions as Nerve-Racking as Tony Blair Did?

Andy Burnham’s first Prime Minister’s Questions will arrive six weeks into his premiership, after Parliament’s summer recess delayed the ritual scrutiny that normally confronts a new leader almost immediately. The session may feel less intimidating than expected, however, because Burnham has already faced three and a half hours of questions in the Commons.

His arrival in Downing Street coincided with MPs leaving Westminster for the summer. With Commons questions absent, his first month in office became what the BBC describes as a soft launch. Now the routine challenges are arriving together, beginning with the weekly half-hour of verbal combat that defines much of Westminster’s public image.

Burnham’s opening moments as prime minister showed a leader who appeared relaxed while setting out his arguments and political outlook. Labour MPs gave him the customary roar of approval as he took his seat, with Deputy Labour Leader Lucy Powell and First Secretary of State Louise Haigh beside him. The display of partisan support, the BBC notes, tends to continue regardless of the political conditions facing a party leader.

For Labour MPs, this was their first chance to see how Burnham would perform after choosing to stay with him rather than continue with Sir Keir Starmer. His opponents privately recognize the political value of his more upbeat manner, but see several vulnerabilities they can exploit: overcrowded prisons, inadequate defence funding and unchanged social care.

Burnham revealed that he plans to attend the COP climate summit later this autumn. He blamed Brexit for damaging the economy and suggested, without explaining how, that he would find the money to increase defence spending. His team wants policy ideas to enter public debate gradually, taking shape over time. It also wants to establish a different tone and style for his premiership. Tony Blair’s memoirs, meanwhile, describe PMQs as an intensely nerve-racking experience, setting an uncomfortable standard for Burnham’s first appearance.

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PMQs was the most nerve wracking, discombobulating, nail biting, bowel moving, terror inspiring, courage draining experience in my prime ministerial life, without question.