Andrew Burnham

Infobox Minister
honorific-prefix = The Right Honourable

name = Andrew Burnham
honorific-suffix = MP

---

office = Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
term_start = 24 January 2008
primeminister = Gordon Brown
predecessor = James Purnell
office2 = Chief Secretary to the Treasury
term_start2 = 28 June 2007
term_end2 = 24 January 2008
primeminister2 = Gordon Brown
predecessor2 = Stephen Timms
successor2 = Yvette Cooper
constituency_MP3 = Leigh
majority3 = 17,272 (47.3%)
term_start3 = 7 June 2001
term_end3 =
predecessor3 = Lawrence Cunliffe
successor3 = Incumbent
birth_date = Liverpool, England
birth_place = birth date and age|1970|01|07|df=y
death_date =
death_place =
party = Labour
spouse = Marie-France Van Heel
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater = Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
occupation =
profession =
religion = Roman Catholiccite news|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-504229/While-Blair-converts-Catholicism-8-Ministers-say-believe-God.html|title=While Blair converts to Catholicism, only 8 Ministers say they believe in God|last=Oliver|first=Jonathan|date=22 December 2007|work=Mail Online|publisher=Daily Mail and General Trust|accessdate=2008-10-11]


website =
footnotes =

Andrew Murray Burnham MP (born 7 January 1970), usually known as Andy Burnham, is a British politician. He is the Labour Member of Parliament for the Greater Manchester constituency of Leigh and has been Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport since 24 January 2008.

Early life

Andy Burnham was born in Liverpool, the son of a telephone engineer father and a receptionist mother, and raised in Culcheth, Warrington, close to the village of Lowton (which is at the southern end of the Leigh Parliamentary Constituency). He was educated at St Aelred's Roman Catholic High School (now St Aelred's Catholic Technology College) on "Birley Street" in Newton-le-Willows and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge from where he was awarded an MA in English.

Joining the Labour Party

He claims to have joined the Labour Party at the age of 14 in 1984 during the miners' strike, and was a researcher to Tessa Jowell MP from 1994 until after the 1997 General Election. He joined the Transport and General Workers Union in 1995. After the 1997 election he was briefly a parliamentary officer for the NHS Confederation from August until December 1997, before taking up the post as an administrator with the Football Task Force for a year. [cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/jan/26/uk.media|title=New culture secretary keeps an open mind on licence fee|last=Woodward|first=Will|date=26 January 2008|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News & Media|accessdate=2008-10-12] In 1998, he became a special advisor to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Chris Smith, where he remained until his election to parliament. He joined the UNISON trade union in 2000.

Member of Parliament

Andy Burnham contested the safe Labour seat of Leigh at the 2001 General Election following the retirement of Lawrence Cunliffe. He was elected with a majority of 16,362, and gave his maiden speech on 4 July 2001. [cite web|url=http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/vo010704/debtext/10704-21.htm#10704-21_spnew1|title=House of Commons Hansard; vol 371, part 14, col 333|date=4 July 2001|work=Hansard|publisher=Parliament of the United Kingdom|accessdate=2008-10-12]

In government

Following his election to parliament, he became a member of the Health Select Committee from 2001 until 2003, when he was appointed the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Home Secretary David Blunkett. Following Blunkett's first resignation in 2004 he became the PPS to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, Ruth Kelly. He was promoted to serve in Tony Blair's government after the 2005 General Election as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State with responsibility for identity cards legislation.

In the government reshuffle of 5 May 2006, Burnham was promoted from the Home Office to a Minister of State at the Department of Health.

In cabinet

In Gordon Brown's first cabinet announced 28 June 2007, Burnham was promoted to Chief Secretary to the Treasury, despite having no background in economics or finance. He was in post at the time of the run on Northern Rock and was described as sounding "completely out of his depth". [cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/jeffrandall/2816044/Ten-lessons-we-can-learn-from-the-Rock-that-rolled-downhill.html|title=Ten lessons we can learn from the Rock that rolled downhill|last=Randall|first=Jeff|date=22 September 2008|work=Telegraph.co.uk|publisher=Telegraph Media Group|accessdate=2008-10-12]

Burnham was alleged to have caused embarrassment to the Government in August 2007 by attacking the Conservative party's Economic Competitiveness report before admitting in an interview that he had not read the report. [ [http://www.moneymarketing.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=148414&d=340&h=341&f=342 "Battle ahead over IHT"] , "Money Marketing", August 20 2007.]

The "Daily Telegraph" published an interview with Burnham on 13 October 2007 in which he stated that: "I think it’s better when children are in a home where their parents are married" and "it’s not wrong that the tax system should recognise commitment and marriage" which created some controversy because following through this argument would replicate the current policies of the Conservative Party, the official opposition in the UK.cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1566036/Marriage-is-important%2C-children-do-notice.html|title=Marriage is important, children do notice|last=Sylvester|first=Rachel|coauthors=Thomson, Alice|date=15 Oct 2007|work=Telegraph.co.uk|publisher=Telegraph Media Group|accessdate=2008-10-12]

In the January 2008 re-shuffle he was made Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. [ [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/peter_riddell/article3248199.ece Times Commentary] 25 Jan 2008]

A strategy paper published at the end of February 2008 by Burnham's department, called for internet service providers to bar customers who use their accounts to download pirated material.

In June 2008 he was forced to apologise to the director of the pressure group Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti, after she threatened to sue him for libel for smearing her reputation. [cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/jun/23/daviddavis.terrorism|title=Chakrabarti-Davis row: Liberty head accepts letter of apology from Burnham|last=Percival|first=Jenny|date=23 June 2008|work=guardian.co.uk|publisher=Guardian News & Media|accessdate=2008-10-11]

Personal life

Burnham married Marie-France van Heel in 2000 after 11 years together, and their son attended the wedding. The couple had been dating since University. Van Heel, formerly head of marketing at MTV, BSkyB and Littlewoods Gaming is now the Planning Director at Creative Communication Agency WRG in Manchester, and they have a son and two daughters.

Burnham was the honorary Chairman of Leigh Rugby League Club for a short period of time. Burnham was also a talented junior cricketer and keen footballer, and competed at both sports for his College. He has played for Labour's "Demon Eyes" football team and is a life-long fan of Premier League football club Everton FC. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2118788.stm|title=Andy Burnham|date=22 October 2002|work=BBC News|publisher=British Broadcasting Corporation|accessdate=2008-10-11] [cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/andy-burnham-the-mr-nice-guy-who-talked-his-way-into-a-nasty-situation-851018.html|title=Andy Burnham: The Mr Nice Guy who talked his way into a nasty situation|last=Brown|first=Colin|date=20 June 2008|work=The Independent|publisher=Independent News & Media|accessdate=2008-10-11]

He is Roman Catholic.

References

External links

* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-10993,00.html Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Andrew Burnham MP]
* [http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/andy_burnham/leigh TheyWorkForYou.com - Andy Burnham MP]
* [http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Andy_Burnham&mpc=Leigh Voting record at the Public Whip]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/365.stm BBC Politics page]
* [http://www.sherlock-holmes.co.uk/news/andy-burnham.html Correspondence regarding Dispute over Hansom Cab]

Audio clips

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/election/ram/leigh.ram Interview with GMR after 2005 election]

Video clips

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ13ciVfPaM Delivering 18 week NHS target]

Persondata
NAME= Burnham, Andrew Murray
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=British politician and Cabinet minister
DATE OF BIRTH= Liverpool, England
PLACE OF BIRTH= 7 January 1970
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=