Andy Burnham’s Real Ed Miliband Test

Is the man set to become our next Prime Minister really prepared to stand up to the establishment forces now fighting to block his preferred choice of Chancellor?

What kind of Prime Minister will Andy Burnham be? That’s the question being anxiously asked in Westminster right now by people who stand to either gain, or lose, a lot depending upon the answer.

At the heart of the question is the issue of who he will choose as his Chancellor.

For a long time it had been accepted wisdom that Burnham would appoint the former Labour leader, and current Energy Ed Miliband, to the job, should he ever become PM.

Miliband is a former Treasury staffer and a highly effective operator, who has pushed through controversial, but transformative plans, for a clean energy revolution in the UK.

His appointment as Chancellor would signal that Burnham is genuine about his pledge to transform how politics works in the UK.

Yet ever since Burnham won the Makerfield by-election there has been a concerted campaign to prevent Miliband’s appointment.

This week the Times - the Westminster establishment paper of choice - gave a full account of what they describe as the “battle” to block Miliband.

“It is an unholy alliance. Bankers, union leaders and some of Andy Burnham’s most senior allies have joined forces with a single objective: stopping Ed Miliband becoming chancellor” they reported.

So what’s really going on here and is Burnham really going to give into those forces now fighting to stop Miliband from entering Number 11?

Here’s what I now expect to happen.