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PoliticsUK PM Burnham appoints Anas Sarwar, who urged Starmer to quit, as Lord and minister
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New UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has appointed Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to the House of Lords and as a minister in the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. The move is a major shock as Sarwar had publicly called on former PM Keir Starmer to resign in February over the Peter Mandelson scandal, in which Mandelson is accused of passing market-sensitive information to Jeffrey Epstein. Sarwar's elevation comes despite leading Scottish Labour to a poor result in the May 7 Holyrood elections, where the party fell to 17 MSPs. Burnham, who took over as PM last week, had promised to end 'factionalism' but immediately removed several Starmer loyalists from his cabinet and appointed his own supporters. The article highlights internal Labour Party tensions and Burnham's consolidation of power.
Source report
Keir Starmer and Anas Sarwar share a joke with local people during a visit to a community centre in Glasgow on December 4, 2025.
Andy Burnham has awarded a peerage and a government job to a senior Labour figure who previously called on Keir Starmer to resign.
In a major political development, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is quitting Holyrood to enter the House of Lords. He will also become a minister at the revamped Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.
Sarwar’s elevation comes despite leading Scottish Labour to a disastrous result at the Holyrood elections on May 7. The party came a distant second to the SNP, with their number of MSPs slumping from 20 to just 17.
Call for Starmer’s Resignation
Sarwar broke ranks in February to call on Starmer to resign as prime minister in the wake of the Peter Mandelson scandal. The disgraced former UK ambassador to Washington is accused of passing market sensitive information to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein when he was business secretary between 2008 and 2010.
Sarwar said at the time: “The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change.
“It is so obvious that we desperately need change in Scotland and in three months time the opportunity to get rid of a failing SNP government is one that is too important to be missed.
“We cannot allow the failures at the heart of Downing Street to mean the failures continue here in Scotland, because the election in May is not without consequence for the lives of Scots.”
Despite speculation that cabinet ministers were set to quit, Starmer managed to see off the rebellion and remained in office until he stood down last week.
Burnham’s New Approach
Burnham last week insisted he would end “factionalism” in the Labour Party. However, on Monday he axed a host of Starmer loyalists while appointing a number of his own supporters to his cabinet within hours of taking over as prime minister.
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HuffPost UK - Athena2 - All Entries (Public)Western
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UK PM Burnham Appoints Sarwar to Lords Amid Labour Backlash