Louise Haigh was instrumental in choosing and interviewing the candidates for senior positions in Andy Burnham’s new Cabinet, The i Paper has been told.
In a highly unusual move that underlines the extent of her influence, Haigh – the first woman to serve as First Secretary of State since Barbara Castle – was tasked with shaping the new Prime Minister’s top team, according to multiple government sources.
Haigh, who resigned as Transport Secretary in 2024 after it emerged she had pleaded guilty to a fraud offence a decade earlier, has become one of the most powerful figures in Burnham’s administration since helping to steer his leadership campaign.
A close political ally of the Prime Minister, she is widely regarded within Labour as one of his most trusted advisers.
Chief whip Anneliese Midgley also had a hand in Cabinet choices
Another key figure is Anneliese Midgley, the former MP who was appointed Chief Whip after Burnham entered Downing Street.
Midgley was entrusted with overseeing the selection of ministers for junior government posts, while Haigh focused on Cabinet appointments, insiders claimed. She is affectionately nicknamed Midge by the Labour Party.
According to the sources, Haigh spent the past few weeks conducting a series of interviews with prospective Cabinet ministers in her parliamentary office and heavily influenced the final decisions on who would be appointed.
The Prime Minister would have had to agree to all positions, however, and would have vetoed or changed any he disagreed with. While highly unusual, Haigh’s focus on sketching out the leading contenders for Cabinet would have allowed Burnham – who has been out of Parliament for 10 years and so has few working relationships with any of them – to make the appointments on his first day in office.
The alternative could have led to several days of uncertainty, with the majority of Starmer’s Cabinet continuing in roles they would be unlikely to keep.
Usually, a new Prime Minister emerges from the existing Cabinet and so has a thorough knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of his or her colleagues.
Allies of Haigh have insisted that the PM picks the team and everyone serves at his discretion. The i Paper also approached No10 for comment.
Haigh urged Burnham not to make Ed Miliband Chancellor
Another source said Haigh had started work on Burnham’s Cabinet picks while up in Makerfield during the by-election which returned him to Parliament. The campaign was run from the Stubshaw Cross club near Wigan, they claimed.
“Lou would hear pitches for jobs from Cabinet at Stubshaw Cross, she was fielding all the senior people up there, while Midge did PLP outreach,” a source said. “I’m pretty sure they had a notebook of people they were moving around to fit the jigsaw.”
A Labour insider said they had been told Haigh helped to select Cabinet appointments with support from Midgley, adding: “It’s not really surprising, is it? He’s not been in Parliament, and neither has James Purnell,” referring to Burnham’s chief of staff and the former Labour cabinet minister.
Purnell is understood to have had a greater influence over the appointments to Burnham’s back room team in Downing Street.
Another Labour source, who described the arrangement as “astonishing”, claimed that Haigh had a “free hand”.
Haigh, alongside Midgely, also urged Burnham not to appoint Ed Miliband as Chancellor, according to multiple sources, and as first reported by Bloomberg.
The disagreement over the Treasury is understood to have been linked to tensions over net zero policy, with Haigh, Midgley and Burnham said to have been somewhat at odds with Miliband’s approach and wanted to have closer links with the trade unions.
“There was a lot of lobbying of Lou and Midge from colleagues who were worried about job losses from Ed’s net zero agenda transferring over to the Treasury,” a Labour MP said.
Under the UK’s constitutional convention, the appointment of Cabinet ministers is ultimately the Prime Minister’s decision.
Burnham Cabinet described as ‘revenge reshuffle’
Burnham’s first Cabinet reshuffle as Prime Minister has prompted accusations that he has broken his own pledge to end Labour’s factional infighting.
The reshuffle, which followed Keir Starmer’s resignation, saw more than half of the outgoing Cabinet removed or demoted. The highest-profile departure was Rachel Reeves, who left the Treasury after former Defence Secretary John Healey was appointed Chancellor.
The scale of the changes has unsurprisingly drawn sharp criticism from allies of Starmer, with one describing it as a “revenge reshuffle”.
Haigh’s rise to become one of Burnham’s closest advisers marks a remarkable comeback after a damaging period in her career.
She resigned as Transport Secretary in 2025 after admitting she had pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation over a 2013 incident involving a work mobile phone that she had reported as stolen.
Haigh said the incident had been a genuine mistake and that she accepted the plea on legal advice, but the episode made her a controversial figure and forced her out of government.
She later rebuilt her position within Labour, becoming a key organiser and strategist behind Burnham’s return to frontline politics.
As his campaign gathered momentum, Haigh emerged as one of the driving forces behind the project, with the phrase “Lou Labour” used by supporters and critics alike to describe her growing influence and the political identity she helped shape around him.
Hence then, the article about the secret role burnham s controversial minister played in selecting his cabinet was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( The secret role Burnham’s controversial minister played in selecting his Cabinet )
Also on site :
- 'It was unlike anything I'd witnessed before': Orcas seen headbutting a sunfish so hard that it exploded
- Nordic Capital announces agreement to sell ArisGlobal to Dassault Systèmes, following its transformation into a scaled and AI-enabled life sciences platform
- Primoris Services Corporation Sued for Securities Law Violations - Contact the DJS Law Group to Discuss Your Rights - PRIM