The Greater Manchester Mayor Was 'Likely' to Have Won Gorton and Denton Byelection, States Labour Number Two
The party's second-in-command has suggested that Andy Burnham would have won the Gorton and Denton byelection, as she called for her party to make more use of the popular Greater Manchester mayor.
A Surprise Victory for the Greens
Overcoming a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, was elected as the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had elected Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.
The Reform Party'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.
Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "Andy Burnham likely could have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have gone after 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 the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move.
Collective Decision
However, she told the BBC she accepted "the group's decision" for the ruling, citing concern about triggering a separate election in Greater Manchester.
Powell also stressed 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 party pledges."
"We have to utilise that insight, leverage Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and consider how we could do that better nationally," she continued.
Future Speculation
Andy Burnham is reportedly considering having another go at becoming an MP again. A source close to him commented, "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 yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite labelling the poll result "disheartening."
Party Response
Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a wake-up call" 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 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 losing Muslim voters over immigration is simply incorrect."
