Andy Burnham says he handled fake Trump aide messages correctly

Andy Burnham has insisted he handled correctly an exchange of messages with someone pretending to be Donald Trump's chief of staff, Susie Wiles. The prime minister said the contact was minimal, contained nothing of consequence, and was reported to the authorities as soon as he became suspicious.

Politico first reported that Mr Burnham had exchanged text messages with an impersonator before the hoax was discovered. Downing Street initially declined to comment, citing national security. But speaking later, Mr Burnham said: "There was a minimal exchange of information of zero consequence and it was quickly reported. I handled it in the right way." He said he was not embarrassed, adding that all politicians face such pressures.

The exchange is understood to have involved only a few messages, with no phone call. Officials say nothing sensitive was passed on. The incident was reported to the relevant authorities, and the UK embassy in Washington contacted the White House. A White House official said the incident was not linked to a previous hack of Susie Wiles's phone, which the FBI investigated last year.

The Liberal Democrats have written to Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee calling for a full investigation into what they called an "egregious security breach". Questions remain about who was behind the impersonation, whether it was a prankster or a hostile foreign state, how Mr Burnham's number was obtained, and whether his phone might have been compromised. Politico also reported that it had found the numbers of three other cabinet ministers on the internet.

This is not the first time senior UK figures have been targeted. Boris Johnson, as foreign secretary, fell victim to a Russian hoax call in 2018, and David Cameron held a video call with someone pretending to be a former Ukrainian president in 2024. The prime minister has not confirmed whether he has changed his phone number.