Donald Trump's aides warn Andy Burnham that making Ed Miliband chancellor would be a 'mistake'

By ROBERT FOLKER, NEWS REPORTER Published: 01:57, 4 July 2026 | Updated: 02:03, 4 July 2026 Senior aides for Donald Trump have privately warned that appointing Ed Miliband as chancellor would be a 'mistake', it was reported last night. The senior officials have reportedly told Labour figures and British counterparts that they are worried about Miliband's opposition to new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. It's understood that the US officials believe that the ban on new licences is 'ideologically driven' and that funds raised from lifting it could be spent on defence. A government source told The Times: 'The Trump administration has made clear that they have concerns about him becoming chancellor, particularly over North Sea oil and his environmental agenda.' The publication added that a US official confirmed that concerns had been raised. Andy Burnham said on Thursday that he has yet to decide who he will appoint as chancellor, although Miliband remains the leading contender. Miliband and Burnham, who served together in cabinet during the New Labour years, are long-term political allies. Other MPs in the running for the top job at No. 11 include former Health Secretary Wes Streeting, Works and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood. Andy Burnham said on Thursday that he has yet to decide who he will appoint as chancellor, although Ed Miliband is thought to be the leading contender Senior aides for Donald Trump have privately warned that appointing Mr Miliband as chancellor would be a 'mistake' Burnham is expected to enter No. 10 on July 20 and is likely to announce his choice of chancellor before then. Trump has previously lashed out at Labour's Net Zero drive and questioned why the UK 'refuses to open' the North Sea to new oil and gas extraction while Europe is 'desperate for energy'. In April, he implored Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband to copy his 'drill, baby, drill' mantra, saying it was 'absolutely crazy that they don't'. Trump also called on the UK to stop building 'windmills' in his scathing criticism of Britain's 'tragic' efforts to switch to renewable energy. Burnham previously said he was 'open' to new drilling in the North Sea, a move favoured by a significant number of Labour MPs and some unions. It remains to be seen what Trump and Burnham's working relationship will be like once the former Mayor of Greater Manchester moves into Downing Street. Last week, Trump described Burnham as the 'mayor of a town' and 'extremely liberal'. The president said: 'I don't know, I think I see that he was, I guess, the mayor of a town. I hear he's extremely liberal, extremely, so that means he probably won't open up the North Sea.'  Mr Miliband is one of the favourites to move into No. 11 in a Burnham government. The two politicians are long-term political allies Burnham has himself previously been critical of the President. During his first term in the White House, Burnham said he wouldn't meet Trump if he visited Manchester during his 2017 state visit accusing him of sharing 'hateful extremist material' online. He also went even further and called on the then-Prime Minister Theresa May to cancel the visit.   In 2021, after the riots at the US Capitol, he said that any British politician who had given Trump the 'time of day' should be 'ashamed'.  During his campaign in the Makerfield by-election, Burnham described US politics as 'polarised' and 'poisonous'.   No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.