A MAN could be heard singing Beethoven’s Ode to Joy as Andy Burnham gave his first speech as the new Prime Minister of the UK.
Distant shouts of ‘No Rosebank’ could also be heard from protesters outside Downing Street amid reports Burnham could back new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea.
However, they were not loud enough to disrupt the new Prime Minister as he said his appointment would be a “circuit breaker” for the UK.
When Keir Starmer gave his resignation speech outside of Number 10 on June 22, notorious campaigner Steve Bray blasted Ode to Joy, the EU's official anthem.
It almost drowned out part of Starmer’s speech.
Bray had done this several times to prime ministers speaking from a lectern outside Number 10.
However, the Metropolitan Police announced there would be a ban on amplified noise outside in Whitehall during the proceedings.
“Conditions are in place on Whitehall tomorrow (Monday, 20 July),” the Met said on social media.
“Anyone assembling near the Downing Street gates to observe events linked to the new Prime Minister must not use any amplified noise equipment and must stay within the shaded area [illustrated on a map]. These conditions are in place between 10:30 – 13:30.”
Bray set up shop outside Buckingham Palace instead, but told the BBC he would not be playing music when Starmer and Burnham had their audiences with the King earlier in the morning.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch tried to take credit for the exclusion zone on Twitter/X, writing: “Every Prime Minister deserves to be able to speak in Downing Street without being drowned out by 'music'.
“After Keir Starmer’s resignation speech last month, I wrote to the Met Police Commissioner and asked him to take action.
“Today, the Commissioner has done the right thing.”
Climate campaigners could also be heard shouting “No Rosebank” during Burnham’s speech, following on from reports that the new Prime Minister is set to approve further North Sea drilling.
Protesters could be seen outside of Downing Street holding a large red banner which read: “No new North Sea oil and gas”, with campaigners holding placards that said “Andy say no to Rosebank” and “Stop North Sea drilling”.
However, the Makerfield MP did not mention oil and gas in his speech.
On Sunday, Labour deputy leader Lucy Powell said that Burnham will have a “change of emphasis” on North Sea oil and gas.
The Labour Party's 2024 manifesto, which Burnham said he would follow, had pledged to issue no new licences but to honour existing ones.
Two oil and gas fields in Scotland, Rosebank and Jackdaw, have been at the heart of the debate over new licences as regulators approved them in 2022 and 2023 under the former Conservative government, but were overturned last year after a legal challenge.
US president Donald Trump came under fire at the weekend for claiming people in Aberdeen will be “dancing in the streets” following reports that Burnham could be set to back new drilling.
