UK PM Burnham Defends Claim Britain Is Overexposed to Bond Markets

LONDON — British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has defended his previous warning that the United Kingdom was too exposed to global bond markets, saying the country needed to become more resilient to international economic shocks.

In an interview with the New Statesman, Burnham said his earlier comments that Britain was too “in hock” to bond markets had been intended to highlight the country’s vulnerability to global price fluctuations rather than advocate increased government borrowing or spending.

“The point about the bond markets, it holds – in that what I was saying was the country has left itself over-exposed,” Burnham said, adding that he wanted to develop a “much more streamlined, productive state.”

Burnham also criticised the previous Labour administration, saying former Prime Minister Keir Starmer and then-Chancellor Rachel Reeves had taken one part of his argument out of context and presented it differently from his intended message.

His comments come as Britain faces continued pressure on public finances and higher government borrowing costs. The UK government borrowed £18.3 billion in August, exceeding expectations of £15.5 billion and bringing cumulative borrowing for the financial year to £77.3 billion, according to Reuters.

Burnham has previously sought to reassure financial markets by saying his government’s October budget would comply with existing fiscal rules while also seeking to ease cost-of-living pressures.

The prime minister said his broader economic approach would focus on strengthening the state’s capacity to support investment and productivity while maintaining a business-friendly environment. He said the government should create conditions that encourage private-sector investment.

Burnham is due to address his first Labour Party conference as prime minister in Liverpool next week, where he is expected to outline his wider political and economic programme. He has described his approach as a departure from the economic and political mainstream of recent decades.

The government faces a difficult fiscal backdrop ahead of the October 28 budget, with higher borrowing costs and increased spending pressures limiting the room available for new measures. Reuters reported that the government’s fiscal headroom had fallen from £24 billion in March to around £10 billion amid higher borrowing and inflation pressures.