🔗 Share this article The Greater Manchester Mayor Would 'Probably' Have Won Gorton and Denton Byelection, States Labour Number Two Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham could have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she called for her party to make more use of the popular Greater Manchester mayor. An Unexpected Result for the Green Party Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, was elected as the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century. The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia. Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "Andy Burnham probably would 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 top decision-making body to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against. Collective Decision However, she told the BBC she understood "the group's decision" for the outcome, citing concern about necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also emphasized that her party needed to learn from the reasons for Burnham's strong support in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is on their side, someone who is implementing those core principles and Labour policies." "We have to utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and consider how we could replicate that success nationally," she continued. Future Speculation Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out having another go at becoming an MP again. One ally said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite labelling the poll result "disappointing." Internal Reactions Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party. Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is expected to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces new laws on tougher immigration measures next week. An insider was reported stating, "The party should not learn the wrong lessons from its electoral setback. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."
Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham could have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she called for her party to make more use of the popular Greater Manchester mayor. An Unexpected Result for the Green Party Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, was elected as the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century. The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia. Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "Andy Burnham probably would 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 top decision-making body to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against. Collective Decision However, she told the BBC she understood "the group's decision" for the outcome, citing concern about necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also emphasized that her party needed to learn from the reasons for Burnham's strong support in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is on their side, someone who is implementing those core principles and Labour policies." "We have to utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and consider how we could replicate that success nationally," she continued. Future Speculation Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out having another go at becoming an MP again. One ally said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite labelling the poll result "disappointing." Internal Reactions Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party. Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is expected to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces new laws on tougher immigration measures next week. An insider was reported stating, "The party should not learn the wrong lessons from its electoral setback. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."