Burnham says he won’t hesitate to call out Trump if he believes it’s right for Britain.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he would be prepared to publicly challenge Donald Trump if doing so was in Britain’s national interest, insisting his priority would always be to defend the UK.

In his first major interview as prime minister, Burnham told the BBC he had enjoyed a positive first conversation with the US president, describing Trump as “really warm”. However, when asked twice whether he trusted him, Burnham stopped short of giving a direct answer, saying: “It’s a changing world, isn’t it, and you just have to call things as they develop.”

He said he would not hesitate to disagree with Trump if necessary, adding: “I can’t at any point say that I won’t take a different opinion from him, that I won’t need to voice a different idea that is right for Britain.”

Asked whether he would call out the US president if it was the right course of action, Burnham replied: “Of course. 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.”

The prime minister also revealed he had concerns about Trump’s decision to begin the conflict with Iran, saying he “wouldn’t hold back from saying what I think is right”.

Burnham said his approach to leadership would remain grounded, adding: “My strength is remaining close to people, close to the public. That will not change as prime minister.”

On defence spending, Burnham declined to commit to increasing spending to 3% of GDP by a specific date. His Chancellor, John Healey, previously resigned from government after arguing the UK would not be secure without reaching that level of spending by 2030.

Burnham said he had appointed Healey fully aware of his views on defence and that their immediate priority was ensuring the government’s defence investment plans were fully funded ahead of this year’s Budget.

Pressed again on when the 3% target would be met, Burnham said: “We’ve got to work out the way of doing that.”

Burnham also ruled out calling an early general election before 2029, saying: “I’m going to rule it out. I don’t think people want it.” Instead, he said his focus would remain on “getting the country back where it should be”.