Andy Burnham on course to be confirmed as Labour leader on July 17

Andy Burnham could be confirmed as Labour leader as early as July 17, after the party's governing body agreed a timetable for the contest to replace British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

According to British media reports, Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) met in London on Thursday to set out the process for electing the party's next leader.

The committee, which includes MPs, trade union representatives, and constituency party officials, agreed that if only one candidate secures the required nominations, the new leader will be formally announced at a special conference on July 17.

With Andy Burnham currently seen as the only realistic contender capable of securing sufficient backing, he is expected to become Labour leader without a contested election.

Under the timetable agreed upon by the NEC, nominations from Labour MPs will open on July 9.

If only one candidate has met the nomination threshold by that point, the special conference on July 17 will confirm them as leader.

Following that announcement, the new Labour leader would be expected to be invited by the king to form a government, becoming prime minister.

However, if another candidate succeeds in securing the backing of 81 Labour MPs and three affiliated organizations, the party would be required to hold a full leadership contest.

That process would involve nominations from local constituency parties and a ballot of Labour members.

In that scenario, the result would not be announced until Aug. 29.