Starmer allies block Burnham from standing for Parliament

Andy Burnham has been blocked from standing for Parliament by allies of Sir Keir Starmer in a move that risks plunging Labour into civil war.

A panel of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), its ruling body, met on Sunday and rejected Mr Burnham’s request to run in the Gorton and Denton by-election by eight votes to one.

In a sign of deep splits in the party, Lucy Powell, Labour’s deputy leader, was the sole vote in support.

Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, who chairs the NEC and has been touted by some as a future leadership candidate, abstained. It appeared she believed she needed to remain impartial given her role overseeing the committee.

On Saturday, Mr Burnham declared his intention to stand in the by-election. This would have allowed him to return to Westminster and potentially launch a leadership challenge against Sir Keir.

However, he needed the backing of Labour’s NEC, which is controlled by allies of the Prime Minister. The attempt by Sir Keir’s allies to block Mr Burnham was first reported by The Telegraph.

Sir Keir’s supporters argued that allowing Mr Burnham, the Greater Manchester Mayor, to seek a House of Commons seat would risk Reform UK winning control of the city.

Sources accused Mr Burnham of putting his personal “ambition” before the party, given that if he stood then a new vote for the Greater Manchester mayoralty would be triggered.

But the blocking of Mr Burnham, which will be seen by critics as a naked attempt to thwart a potential leadership rival, set off a backlash.

Mainstream, the soft-Left group closely aligned with Andy Burnham, said in a statement: “Labour must reverse this decision if it is serious about putting country before party.

“We urge the Party to reconsider in the interests of taking on Reform and building the strongest possible team in Westminster.”

John McDonnell, the Labour MP and former shadow chancellor under Jeremy Corbyn, said it was a “disgusting decision” that would “hasten [Sir Keir Starmer’s] demise”.

“You could have shown magnanimous leadership but instead it’s cowardice,” he posted on X.

The Prime Minister is facing anger from backbenchers on the Left of the party who had backed Mr Burnham’s candidacy, potentially tipping the party into civil war at a time when it is lagging behind in the polls.

Jon Trickett, the Labour MP for Normanton and Hemsworth, told The Telegraph: “The decision to prevent members having a full choice of available candidates reveals weakness and lack of confidence in Downing Street.”

One Labour MP on the Left of the party said the decision made the Labour leadership look “absolutely p--- weak” and would embolden those seeking to install Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary as leader.

They said the decision was “entirely predictable”, but added: “That doesn’t make it appear any less pathetic that it’s happened.”

Asked how they would describe their reaction to what happened, they said: “Depressing is probably the word I’d use.”

‘Madness’ to risk mayoral election

Sir Keir’s allies claimed that permitting Mr Burnham’s candidacy would have cost Labour hundreds of thousands of pounds to fight a mayoral election. It would have risked Manchester falling into the hands of Nigel Farage’s party, they said.

An ally of Sir Keir warned before the NEC decision that triggering a new election for the Greater Manchester mayoralty would have led to a “nasty and divided” campaign that could have seen Reform win control of the city.

The source said: “We would never forgive ourselves. It would be political madness to give up one of the biggest cities to Reform. We should not gamble with people’s lives and communities like that.”

The ally also warned against “turning inwards and doing a bad version of Tory psychodrama” and questioned whether the “ambition of one man” was worth it for the party.

Supporters of Sir Keir had claimed that Mr Burnham’s comment last autumn that Labour was “in hock to the bond markets” had added £1bn in higher interest payments as markets were spooked by the prospect of him becoming leader.

Mr Burnham, who is known as the “King of the North”, also had the backing of several senior figures on the Left of the party.

Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary and former Labour leader, had said Mr Burnham would be a “massive asset in Parliament”.

Other supporters included Sir Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, and Ms Powell.

Mr Streeting, who is considered a future leadership candidate from Labour’s Right, previously criticised “disgraceful” briefings against Mr Burnham but stopped short of backing his candidacy.

Blocking Mr Burnham could embolden other potential leadership contenders such as Angela Rayner and Mr Streeting, both by creating a new grievance for many backbenchers and removing a powerful rival.

The party’s chosen candidate in Gorton will face a major challenge from the ascendant Reform UK, which came second in the seat in 2024.

Andrew Gwynne, the Labour MP who represents the seat, said on Thursday that he would stand down before the conclusion of an ethics investigation into leaked abusive WhatsApp messages over which he was suspended last year.

Many in the party fear that if Labour loses to Nigel Farage’s party now that Mr Burnham has been blocked, it will be a fatal blow for the Prime Minister.

Mr Burnham is also likely to feel free to step up his criticism of No 10.

The mayor, who has twice run to become Labour leader and held Cabinet positions under Gordon Brown, has made no secret of his desire to become Prime Minister.

[Source: Daily Telegraph]