The Greater Manchester Mayor Would 'Probably' Have Won the Recent Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

The party's second-in-command has suggested that Andy Burnham could have triumphed in the Gorton and Denton byelection, as she urged her party to leverage the popular Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Greens

Overcoming a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the previous general election, a local Green councillor, a community tradesperson, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had elected Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.

Reform UK's Matt Goodwin placed second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Renewed Scrutiny Over Candidate Decision

The unexpected outcome has sparked renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to block Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month.

Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He probably would have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the manner 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.

Accepting Responsibility

However, she stated she accepted "collective responsibility" for the outcome, pointing to worries over necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester.

Powell also emphasized 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 party pledges."

"It is essential we utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and reflect on how we could replicate that success nationally," she added.

What Comes Next

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out another attempt at returning to parliament. A source close to him commented, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never."

So far, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite calling the poll result "disheartening."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a key figure on Labour's left, called 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 party should not learn the wrong lessons from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are losing Muslim voters over immigration is simply incorrect."