Andy Burnham breaks silence after 'exchanging messages' with 'fake Trump official'

Andy Burnham has insisted he is not embarrassed about his exchange of messages with someone pretending to be Donald Trump’s White House Chief of Staff, adding: "I handled it in the right way." The Prime Minister was in contact with an unknown individual pretending to be top White House aide Susie Wiles, but he became suspicious after several messages, and reported the incident.

Asked by broadcasters if he was embarrassed by the contact, the Mr Burnham said: "No, I’m not, because there was a minimal exchange, nothing of consequence, and actually, quickly I realised that this needed to be reported, and I did so." Speaking from Wolverhampton bus station, Mr Burnham added: "So I handled it in the right way. All politicians are receiving these pressures and these challenges, but I did everything right. There was a minimal exchange of information of zero consequence, and it was quickly reported."

Asked what action had been taken to find out who had impersonated the White House chief of staff, Mr Burnham replied: "The correct action has been taken here and in the US."

Reports of the exchange of messages first emerged on Monday in the news outlet Politico.

The British embassy in Washington was so concerned it raised the matter with the White House, two officials who spoke to the media organisation said.

Ms Wiles phone had previously been hacked, according to reports from America, but a US official told Politico that the incident involving Mr Burnham was not related to this.

Last year, The Wall Street Journal reported that the FBI had launched an investigation into efforts to access Ms Wiles’ phone after an unknown person contacted prominent Republicans and business chiefs while pretending to be her.

Mr Trump later appeared not to be aware of the incident, telling reporters at the White House about Mr Burnham: "I’m sure that he had a miscommunication."