Andy Burnham said Britain will challenge Donald Trump when national interests require it.
Burnham declined to commit to a three per cent defence spending timeline.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham ruled out an early UK general election.
Andy Burnham has said he is prepared to publicly challenge Donald Trump when it is the right thing to do for Britain, signalling a more assertive approach to the transatlantic relationship than his predecessor while stopping short of saying whether he trusts the US president.
Speaking to the BBC in his first major interview since taking office, Burnham said his initial exchange with Trump had been positive, describing him as really warm. But when asked twice directly whether he trusted him, he declined to answer, saying only that it was a changing world and that you had to call things as they developed.
"I can't at any point say that I won't take a different opinion from him, that I will need to voice a different idea that is right for Britain," he said, adding: "You have to defend your own national interest before anything else. That's what you're required to do if you're to do this job properly."
Defence spending and early election
The prime minister declined to commit to a specific date by which Britain would spend three per cent of GDP on defence, a target his chancellor John Healey had previously said was essential for national safety by 2030, a position he held firmly enough to resign from the previous government over. Burnham said he had appointed Healey fully aware of his views on the critical importance of defence spending, but said the immediate priority was ensuring the existing defence investment plan was fully funded ahead of the budget later this year. Asked again directly about the three per cent commitment, he said: "We've got to work out the way of doing that."
On the question of an early general election, Burnham was unequivocal, saying he was ruling it out and that he did not believe the public wanted one. His focus, he said, was on getting the country back to where it should be.
Burnham also said his strength lay in remaining close to people and to the public, and that this would not change now that he was in Downing Street. The full interview is due to be broadcast on Monday.
