🔗 Share this article The Greater Manchester Mayor Was 'Likely' to Have Secured the Recent Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she urged her party to leverage the influential Greater Manchester mayor. An Unexpected Result for the Green Party Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, became the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for almost one hundred years. The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, narrowly beating the official Labour contender, Angeliki Stogia. Renewed Scrutiny Over Candidate Decision The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning of the party's choice to block Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He probably would have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the same way that they did." Powell was the only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to support allowing Burnham to stand, with eight others, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move. Collective Decision However, she told the BBC she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also stressed that her party must 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 Labour policies." "We have to utilise that insight, leverage Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and reflect on how we could do that better across the country," she added. Future Speculation Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at becoming an MP again. A source close to him said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the Gorton and Denton outcome. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disappointing." Internal Reactions Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party. Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces legislation for stricter border controls next week. A source close to the Home Secretary was quoted as saying, "The party should not misinterpret the message from its electoral setback. The idea that we are losing Muslim voters over immigration is simply incorrect."
Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she urged her party to leverage the influential Greater Manchester mayor. An Unexpected Result for the Green Party Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, became the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for almost one hundred years. The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, narrowly beating the official Labour contender, Angeliki Stogia. Renewed Scrutiny Over Candidate Decision The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning of the party's choice to block Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month. In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He probably would have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the same way that they did." Powell was the only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to support allowing Burnham to stand, with eight others, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move. Collective Decision However, she told the BBC she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester. Powell also stressed that her party must 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 Labour policies." "We have to utilise that insight, leverage Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and reflect on how we could do that better across the country," she added. Future Speculation Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at becoming an MP again. A source close to him said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never." To date, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the Gorton and Denton outcome. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disappointing." Internal Reactions Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party. Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces legislation for stricter border controls next week. A source close to the Home Secretary was quoted as saying, "The party should not misinterpret the message from its electoral setback. The idea that we are losing Muslim voters over immigration is simply incorrect."