Burnham Faces Scrutiny Over Extended Responses at Prime Minister's Questions

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham is drawing the attention of the Speaker of the House of Commons for taking longer than his predecessors to answer questions during Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs). Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, has repeatedly urged for quicker responses to ensure more Members of Parliament (MPs) can participate in the sessions.

During Burnham's early appearances at PMQs, the Speaker noted his lengthy answers. "At least he's answering detailed questions," Sir Lindsay observed, "My problem is I'm not going to get through the list, and both of us will be in trouble with the backbenches when we don't make it." He further expressed concern last week, stating, "We really are going to have to try and speed up some of the answers."

Analysis of the first three PMQs sessions for Burnham indicates he spoke for an average of 22 minutes per session. This is reportedly between three and six minutes longer than the average for other Prime Ministers observed over similar autumn periods.

While the number of questions asked each week can fluctuate, concerns about time constraints are amplified by Burnham's average response time. Examining the average time spent on each answer, Burnham averaged 51 seconds per response. This contrasts with previous Prime Ministers, where Liz Truss averaged 33 seconds, Boris Johnson 35 seconds, and both Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak averaged 39 seconds. This means Burnham's answers are, on average, one-third longer than those of Starmer and Sunak, and up to 50% longer than Truss's.

A source close to the Prime Minister suggested that Burnham's longer responses stem from a tendency to "actually answer the questions." A spokesperson for the Speaker's office reiterated the Speaker's commitment to facilitating participation, stating, "The speaker is always keen to get in as many backbenchers as possible for any question session."