Andy Burnham, the MP likely to be the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, does an AMA in r/ukpolitics which receives hundreds of questions. Burnham receives blowback for his responses opposing pension reform and calling new elections among other hot-button issues. Also, a Tory MP shows up.
Direct link to the AMA: Andy Burnham here - AMA
To be clear, not all of Burnham's responses have provoked negative responses or were otherwise dramatic - I have only featured the ones in this post that did.
Background Context
The Labour Party is currently in control of the UK's government; after the departure of Keir Starmer as PM, Burnham is the only currently-declared Labour candidate for PM.
For background, you can read more on Wikipedia about Andy Burnham here, Kemi Badenoch here, and the Triple Lock here: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Pension_(United_Kingdom)#Pensions_Act_2007)
The Drama
- Kemi Badenoch, the Leader of the Opposition, pops in to the AMA to challenge Burnham by writing:
>Hi Andy, Kemi here. Whilst you’re answering softball questions on Reddit, I’ve been in Yorkshire answering questions from the press.
>You’re going to be Prime Minister soon so it’s time to start acting like one. Come out from hiding, face a proper press conference and submit yourself to scrutiny and some tough questions.
>Are you up for it?
Prompting this response from Burnham:
>Fair challenge, Kemi - but don’t forget it’s only two weeks since I faced questions from 74,000 members of the public in Makerfield!
and this commentary from a third Reddit user:
>The year is 2026. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Leader of the Opposition are having a Reddit debate.
- In response to the top-scoring question (~950 points):
>Thanks for the AMA Andy, is it time to abolish the triple lock? Or at least have that discussion?
Burnham wrote:
>I appreciate there’s a lot of debate about this but it is important that the commitment in the manifesto stands.
The score of his response is hidden currently but based on the number and tone of the response comments this response is not being well-received.
- In response to a question asking if he would call for new elections, Burnham wrote
>No. As I said in my speech on Monday, I’m going to work to the 2024 manifesto.
This prompts allegations of hypocrisy on Burnham's part, as he had called for the Tories to call snap elections in a similar situation.
The AMA is ongoing and this post will be updated with any notable updates.
Update: The Independent has the following piece on the AMA: Andy Burnham announces he will keep controversial pensions triple lock when he become prime minister | PM-in-waiting ruled out an early election, backed a better post-Brexit trade deal with the EU and chose Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas among his favourite films