Andy Burnham Would 'Probably' Have Secured the Recent Byelection, Says Labour Number Two

The party's second-in-command has indicated that Andy Burnham could 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 Green Party

Overcoming a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a local plumber, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This occurred in an area that had elected Labour MPs for nearly a century.

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

Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy

The surprise result has prompted renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month.

Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "Andy Burnham likely could have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the same way that they did."

Powell was the sole member of Labour's top decision-making body to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with eight others, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move.

Collective Decision

However, she stated she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over triggering a separate election in Greater Manchester.

Powell also emphasized that her party needed to draw inspiration from the sources of Burnham's strong support in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is implementing those Labour values and party pledges."

"It is essential we draw on that, leverage Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and consider how we could replicate that success across the country," she continued.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at becoming an MP again. One ally said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never."

So far, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the Gorton and Denton outcome. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite calling the poll result "disappointing."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a wake-up call" 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 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."