- Labour deputy leader suggests Burnham would have won the Gorton and Denton byelection.
- Labour placed third in the seat, with Greens winning and Reform UK second.
- Party decision to block Burnham from standing faces renewed scrutiny after loss.
Labour’s deputy leader, Lucy Powell, expressed confidence that Andy Burnham would have secured victory in the Gorton and Denton byelection had the party permitted his candidacy. Powell stated to the BBC’s Newscast podcast that the Greater Manchester mayor would “probably” have held the previously safe seat. She suggested that the Greens would not have pursued the contest with comparable intensity had Burnham been the Labour candidate instead.
Thursday’s election delivered a significant blow to Labour, which fell to third place in what had been a stronghold for decades. The Greens achieved their fifth parliamentary seat through this victory, while Reform UK secured the second position. This unexpected result intensified criticism of Labour’s earlier decision to prevent Burnham from contesting the byelection, raising questions about strategic judgment within party leadership.
Powell served as the sole member of Labour’s ruling national executive committee who voted to permit Burnham’s candidacy. Eight other committee members, including party leader Keir Starmer, opposed his participation. Despite this disagreement, Powell acknowledged accepting “collective responsibility” for the final decision, citing concerns about triggering a separate mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester.
Powell emphasized Burnham’s appeal and effectiveness in the region, noting that constituents perceive him as someone genuinely committed to their interests and Labour principles. She called for the national party to replicate his approach more broadly, suggesting that understanding what makes Burnham successful locally could enhance Labour’s performance nationally. Powell indicated that party leader Starmer shares this conviction and has been actively considering how to implement such improvements.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is preparing to caution the party against shifting leftward in response to the byelection defeat. As she introduces stricter immigration legislation next week, a source close to Mahmood told the Times that Labour should not draw incorrect conclusions from the loss. The source disputed the notion that Muslim voter departures relate to immigration policy, characterizing such assumptions as fundamentally flawed.
