Rise of the New Labour zombies! Ed Balls 'set for shock return' under Burnham alongside ex-Cabinet minister James Purnell - with David Miliband tipped for Foreign Secretary

By JAMES TAPSFIELD, UK POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 08:17, 3 July 2026 | Updated: 08:29, 3 July 2026 Andy Burnham is being tipped to bring back another New Labour big beast as the clock ticks down to his arrival in Downing Street. There is speculation that Ed Balls, another stalwart from the Blair and Brown era, could make a shock comeback to the political frontline. Mr Balls - who launched a career in broadcasting after being humiliatingly ousted from the Commons in 2015 - was Mr Burnham's long-term striking partner in the notorious Labour 'Demon Eyes' football team.  He has heaped praise on his friend recently, quipping that he always 'puts the ball in the back of the net'. Mr Balls would join his former Cabinet colleague James Purnell, who is poised to become No10 chief of staff.  Many in Westminster expect David Miliband to be brought back as Foreign Secretary, while his brother Ed and Mr Balls' wife Yvette Cooper are also in line for senior roles. A Labour source told the i paper that Mr Balls - a former Strictly Come Dancing contestant - would be likely to take a peerage and be an advisor or head a commission instead of running a Whitehall department. There is speculation that Ed Balls, another stalwart from Blair and Brown era, could make a shock comeback to the political frontline. He is pictured on Strictly Come Dancing in 2016 Mr Balls launched a career in broadcasting after being humiliatingly ousted from the Commons in 2015. Pictured on ITV's Good Morning Britain last year Mr Burnham is looking almost certain to become Labour leader in a 'coronation' that would see him formally take over from Keir Starmer as PM on July 20. Last night the former Greater Manchester Mayor gave his first broadcast interview since winning the Makerfield by-election. He gave a strong hint at tax rises, telling LBC there is 'room' within Labour's manifesto promises for boosting revenues. But Mr Burnham argued he is 'not indisciplined' about the public finances, saying he has yet to pick his future chancellor. Mr Burnham is facing a tightrope act in drawing up his senior team, with warnings from women Labour MPs that there must be gender equality in the ministerial ranks. Ed Miliband has been heavily tipped to take charge of No11, despite alarm from business, unions and party moderates. But his brother David is also in the frame for a shock comeback, potentially resuming his old role as Foreign Secretary.  That would mean two of the four traditional great offices of state being occupied by Milibands - with only one - Home Secretary - available to be held by a woman. Labour insiders believe that would not be tenable, with women Labour MPs demanding that half of ministers are female. David quit UK politics after losing the 2010 Labour leadership election to his younger brother Ed. Mr Miliband is currently head of New York-based aid agency the International Rescue Committee, earning £1million a year.  The older Miliband pointedly refused to rule out a Cabinet return when he was asked directly at an event last week, merely saying Mr Burnham would 'make his own choices'. Mr Burnham was forced to distance himself earlier this week from a much-mocked briefing that he will be Labour's first woman premier. A senior figure had told the Spectator that he would be 'a female PM in all but sex'.  Mr Balls was Mr Burnham's long-term striking partner in the notorious Labour 'Demon Eyes' football team (pictured playing together at the 2011 Labour Party conference) Mr Balls' wife Yvette Cooper is also in line for a senior role under Mr Burnham But the former Greater Manchester mayor told a meeting of Parliamentary Labour Party women: 'I want to put on record that I never have and never will describe myself as the first female Labour PM.' He added: 'I want to make it clear that if anyone in my team was found to have done that they would be out of the door. Their feet wouldn't touch the floor.' The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. 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.