What is Andy Burnham’s religion? Labour MP on teachings that ‘underpin his politics’

Andy Burnham, widely regarded as a future prime minister candidate, has been sworn in on the Bible as the new Labor MP for Makerfield, appearing in the House of Commons for the first time since his by-election victory last week.

This is a continuation of his previous description of himself as “not particularly religious”, but he also claimed that “Catholic social teaching forms the basis of my politics”.

The religious affiliations of British prime ministers have historically been predominantly Anglican.

While Boris Johnson was baptized a Catholic, it is confirmed that he was an Anglican in his youth, and it was not until he left Number 10 that Sir Tony Blair’s conversion to Catholicism took place.

Rishi Sunak was the first Asian British prime minister to identify as a devout Hindu, while Benjamin Disraeli, who served in the 1800s, was the first and so far only Jewish prime minister.

Taking the oath on Monday, he said: “I swear by God Almighty that I will remain faithful and maintain true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles, his heirs and successors, according to the law. So help me God.”

In an interview a little over a decade ago, he described himself as “Catholic by upbringing, but I’m not very religious now.”

He told the Huffington Post in 2015 that his children attend a Catholic school and that he “believes in the values ​​and the foundation that it gives you, I’m a big believer in that.”

He said: “Catholic social teaching forms the basis of my politics, we had to study the catechism at school, but this is strong, powerful and true.”

In the same interview, he said that the Church in which he grew up was “quite forgiving, quite humane, humorous and irreverent”, but that in later years he “went into a more judgmental mode and became much more obsessed with issues around sexuality and sexual behaviour”.

Mr Burnham said at the time that he had become “more and more distant” under the rule of the late Pope Benedict.

He touched on the then pastor’s speech about wanting a “smaller, purer” church, and I actually found that quite scary.

Mr Burnham spoke in the same interview of having “high hopes” for Benedict’s successor, Pope Francis, whom he later met in 2023 when he was mayor of Greater Manchester.

He visited the Vatican with a delegation from Greater Manchester to discuss its mission to combat climate change, presenting Francis with a Manchester United jersey and later describing the experience as “extremely moving”.

Following the death of Pope Francis last year, Mr Burnham said it had “affected me more than I expected” and described him as “the most relevant and relatable Pope of my life”.

The Catholic Church remains staunchly opposed to assisted dying, but it is something Mr Burnham suggested he would vote for in principle.

In 2024, just before the first House of Commons vote on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, Mr Burnham told BBC Manchester he would “probably vote in favor of it”.

While previously an MP, he abstained from a vote on another bill to legalize assisted dying in 2015, citing concerns about safeguards and people feeling under pressure.

However, he said that “his family experience over the past nine years has changed my view.”

He said: “I think we’ve allowed people to suffer and families to suffer too much.”

He cautioned that his support was for the principle of assisted dying and insisted he would seek a requirement for care homes to be “appropriately funded and regulated” before any new legislation was implemented.

Archbishop John Sherrington, presiding bishop on life matters for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, said last week he was “deeply disappointed” that assisted dying had returned in the form of a “flawed bill”.

He said: “The reintroduction of this legislation once again puts the most vulnerable people at risk. I ask MPs to reject this bill.”

The bill, sponsored by Labor MP Lauren Edwards, who took the flag from her party colleague Kim Leadbeater, returned to debate in the House of Commons on 11 September.