British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he would not hesitate to publicly disagree with US President Donald Trump if doing so was necessary to protect Britain’s national interests.
In his first major interview since taking office, Burnham told the BBC that his initial conversation with Trump had gone well, describing the US president as “really warm”.
However, when asked twice whether he trusted Trump, Burnham stopped short of giving a direct answer, saying the world is constantly changing and that situations must be judged as they evolve. He added that he could not rule out expressing a different view from Trump in the future if he believed it was in Britain’s best interests.
“I can’t at any point say that I won’t take a different opinion from him [Trump], that I will need to voice a different idea that is right for Britain,” he stated, noting, “My strength is remaining close to people, close to the public, that will not change as prime minister.”
further said, “You have to defend your own national interest before anything else. That’s what you’re required to do if you’re to do this job properly.”
Burnham on Hormuz, defence and security
Meanwhile, the UK PM stated he had “concern” over decision to initiate the conflict with Iran and stressed that he “wouldn’t hold back from saying what I think is right.”
According to a statement from Burnham’s office on Monday, he also assured Trump that Britain would remain committed to defence and security and would support efforts to ensure the safe reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
A Downing Street spokesperson said that during the call, which took place shortly after Burnham assumed office as prime minister, he reaffirmed his commitment to defence and security.
“The Prime Minister… underlined his commitment to defence and security and said ensuring the security of the UK and its allies was at the top of his agenda,” the spokesperson said in a readout of the conversation, as per Reuters.
“The President then updated on the situation in the Middle East, and the Prime Minister outlined the UK’s commitment to securing the movement of shipping in the to support global supply chains and drive down costs for businesses and families across the country,” it added.
What did Burnham say on Britain’s defence spending?
Burnham declined to set a timeline for increasing Britain’s defence spending to 3% of GDP, according to BBC. The issue had been a key point for his new Chancellor, John Healey, who resigned from the previous government after arguing that the UK would not be secure unless it committed to raising defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030.
Responding to the issue, Burnham said, “I appointed my new chancellor very aware of what he had said about the critical importance of defence spending and the position that he had taken about that.”
“The first challenge facing us both is to ensure that the defence investment plan is fully funded and that’s the thing that’s right in front of us and we need to work that through as we go towards the budget later this year,” he asserted.
When pressed again on whether his government would commit to raising defence spending to 3% of GDP, the UK PM mentioned, “We’ve got to work out the way of doing that.”
Burnham also firmly ruled out holding an early general election before 2029 for the first time, saying, “I’m going to rule it out… I don’t think people want it.” He added that his priority was “getting the country back where it should be.”
