Sadiq Khan breaks silence on Andy Burnham’s return to Westminster | Politics | News
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said fellow mayor Andy Burnham should be able to run as an MP (Image: Getty )
London Mayor Sadiq Khan urged the Labour Party not to block Andy Burnham from running for Parliament, despite some MPs hoping he will challenge Sir Keir Starmer for leadership. Mr Burnham, who has fervent support amongst Labour’s hard-left, has until 5pm today (Saturday) to ask for permission to stand in the Gorton and Denton by-election by-election, with reports suggesting the Prime Minister’s supporters will seek to block his candidacy.
On Saturday, a series of senior Labour politicians urged the party’s national executive committee (NEC) not to stand in Mr Burnham’s way. Most explicit was Sir Sadiq, who told the Fabian Society conference he thought Mr Burnham should be allowed to stand and would campaign for him.
He said: “I’m a firm believer in the best team having all the talent playing for them.”
Earlier, Labour’s deputy leader Lucy Powell had told the same conference that the decision on whether Mr Burnham should be the candidate ought to be “up to Andy and the local members”. Both also reiterated their support for Sir Keir, with Ms Powell urging the party to “get behind” the Prime Minister.
Read more: Huge blow for Starmer as key ex-ally gives backing for Burnham takeover
Read more: ‘Keir Starmer’s days could be numbered – but one thing could save him’
Sadiq Khan and Andy Burnham have both been mayor’s of British cities (Image: Getty )
Some serving Labour MPs unhappy with Labour’s dismal ratings in the polls said Mr Burnham was the party’s best chance of holding the Gorton and Denton seat against the surging popularity of Reform UK.
Karl Turner, who is Labour MP for East Hull, said on social media: โIf Andy Burnham decides that he wants to return to parliament he might well be our best hope to retain the seat for Labour.”
Mr Turner added that he thought blocking Mr Burnham would be “a catastrophic mistake”.
And Ian Byrne, Labour MP for Liverpool West Derby, said on Saturday: โThe Labour Party hierarchy should be begging Andy Burnham to stand. Keeping Reform out of Gorton and Denton is imperative.
โThose who have trashed our polling and hollowed out Labourโs base are now actively threatening Labourโs chances of winning this seatโ.
Andy Burnham is seen by some in the Labour party as a potential successor to Keir Starmer (Image: Getty )
Speculation has surrounded a possible return to Westminster for the Mayor of Greater Manchester since Andrew Gwynne announced he would resign as an MP on health grounds on Thursday.
Mr Burnham, who is widely believed to have ambitions to lead the party, is yet to comment on whether he intends to stand.
But if he does put himself forward, he will have to apply to Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) for permission to do so by 5pm on Saturday. Reports have suggested that supporters of the Prime Minister on the NEC may seek to block his candidacy, either out of fear it would destabilise the Government or to prevent another by-election for the Greater Manchester mayoralty.
Although Ms Powell did not explicit say she wanted Mr Burnham to stand, she told the Fabian Society she wanted to see “the very best candidate” selected, and described him as “incredibly popular”.
Warning that the contest could be “the most consequential by-election” of the current Parliament, the Manchester Central MP said she did not want to see Reform UK or the Green Party “get a foothold into my city or into a northern city which they’ve not yet done before”.
Although Mr Gwynne retained the seat in 2024 with 51% of the vote, the collapse in Labour’s polling position means Gorton and Denton could be a tougher fight against both Reform and the Greens.
