Andy Burnham Would 'Probably' Have Secured the Recent Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

Labour's deputy leader has indicated that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she urged her party to make more use of the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Greens

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

Reform UK's Matt Goodwin placed second, narrowly beating the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy

The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning 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 probably would have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the same way that they did."

Powell was the only member of Labour's top decision-making body to support allowing Burnham to stand, with eight others, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Accepting Responsibility

However, she told the BBC she understood "the group's decision" for the ruling, citing concern about necessitating 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 fighting for them, someone who is delivering those core principles and Labour policies."

"We have to draw on that, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and consider how we could replicate that success nationally," she continued.

What Comes Next

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out having another go at becoming an MP again. 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 not publicly spoken on the Gorton and Denton outcome. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disheartening."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a key figure on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party.

In contrast, the Home Secretary is expected to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces new laws on stricter border controls next week.

A source close to the Home Secretary was quoted as saying, "The party should not learn the wrong lessons from its electoral setback. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is just plain wrong."