🔗 Share this article The Greater Manchester Mayor Would 'Probably' Have Won Gorton and Denton Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham could have won the recent Manchester byelection, as she called for her party to leverage the popular Greater Manchester mayor. A Surprise Victory for the Greens Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This occurred in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century. Reform UK's Matt Goodwin placed second, narrowly beating the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia. Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy The surprise result has sparked fresh debate of the party's choice to prevent Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "He likely could have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the manner that they did." Powell was the only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against. Collective Decision However, she stated she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over triggering a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also stressed that her party needed to draw inspiration from the sources of Burnham's widespread popularity in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is implementing those core principles and party pledges." "It is essential we draw on that, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and reflect on how we could replicate that success across the country," she added. What Comes Next Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at returning to parliament. A source close to him said, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disappointing." Party Response Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party. In contrast, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as the government proposes legislation for tougher immigration measures next week. A source close to the Home Secretary was reported stating, "The Labour government should not misinterpret the message from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."
Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham could have won the recent Manchester byelection, as she called for her party to leverage the popular Greater Manchester mayor. A Surprise Victory for the Greens Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This occurred in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century. Reform UK's Matt Goodwin placed second, narrowly beating the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia. Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy The surprise result has sparked fresh debate of the party's choice to prevent Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "He likely could have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the manner that they did." Powell was the only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against. Collective Decision However, she stated she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over triggering a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also stressed that her party needed to draw inspiration from the sources of Burnham's widespread popularity in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is implementing those core principles and party pledges." "It is essential we draw on that, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and reflect on how we could replicate that success across the country," she added. What Comes Next Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at returning to parliament. A source close to him said, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disappointing." Party Response Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party. In contrast, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as the government proposes legislation for tougher immigration measures next week. A source close to the Home Secretary was reported stating, "The Labour government should not misinterpret the message from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."