Roy Burnham, the father of British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, has died after suffering from Alzheimer’s for a long time. According to an official statement from Downing Street, the head of the British government has canceled all scheduled engagements for today and tomorrow.
Statement from Downing Street
The official version says the cancellation of the schedule is directly linked to the loss in the prime minister’s family. No further details were given beyond the announcement that all planned activities for the next two days have been suspended.
Burnham had a roundtable with business leaders and local government officials on his calendar, while a cabinet meeting had also been scheduled for tomorrow.
The illness Burnham had made public
Andy Burnham had previously spoken publicly about his father’s condition. At the end of July, during a speech on social welfare reform, he said he would work to help “his father and millions of people like him,” who, according to him, are victims of a flawed system.
Shortly before entering Downing Street on July 20, Burnham had expressed regret that Alzheimer’s was preventing his father, at the age of 80, from understanding that his son was becoming prime minister.
Earlier statement about his father
In an interview with The Times, Burnham said: “It’s sad, because he would have been proud.” He had stressed that his political journey was owed in significant part to his father as well.
The loss comes at a time when the British prime minister had publicly linked his personal experience to the debate over social policies and the way families facing serious illnesses such as Alzheimer’s are treated.
The immediate cancellation of the schedule shows that the British government has chosen to temporarily withdraw from planned public activities, at least according to the announcement made by Downing Street.
So far, there has been no further official clarification about additional changes to the prime minister’s calendar.