Lee Anderson slams ‘smug’ Andy Burnham as Reform flexes its muscles | Politics | News
Lee Anderson (right) says Makerfield needs a good constituency MP (Image: Getty Archive)
Lee Anderson has said Andy Burnham is “smug”, and if he were to become the prime minister, people in Makerfield “would never see him”. The Reform UK MP launched his verbal attack on the Mayor of Greater Manchester during a visit to the constituency on Saturday (May 16) where he joined a group of activists.
Mr Anderson, in a video posted on social media by former Tory MP Marco Longhi, said: “We’re gonna win in Makerfield.” Asked about Reform UK‘s chances of winning the upcoming by-election, Mr Anderson said: “We’ve got a real chance in this place, Marco. This is one of the most historic by-elections ever and we’re gonna throw the kitchen sink at it.”
On Mr Burnham, the MP for Ashfield agreed with Mr Longhi that the mayor was “a bit entitled”, adding: “He’s smug. He’s walking in expecting the people of Makerfield just to vote for him. Do you know what? If he did become prime minister, they’d never seen him, would they?”
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He said Makerfield want a “good” constituency MP and that is what they deserve.
Mr Burnham is tipped to be selected to run as Labour’s candidate in the by-election. So far, Labourโs ruling body, the National Executive Committee, has only granted Mr Burnham permission to stand in the selection process.
The Greater Manchester mayor is seeking to replace Josh Simons, who is standing down as an MP to make way for Mr Burnham to return to Parliament.
Applications close on Monday (May 18) and the NEC will endorse a candidate on Thursday. June 18 is thought to be the earliest date a by-election could take place. Candidate selection processes are already under way for Reform UK and the Greens.
If he is successfully elected, Mr Burnham is widely expected to challenge Sir Keir for the party leadership.
While Makerfield is typically a safe seat for Labour, the party expects a stiff challenge from Reform UK this time around. Mr Simons secured a majority of just 5,399 over Nigel Farageโs party at the 2024 general election.
Since then, Labourโs polling collapse and Reformโs surge have seen their fortunes reverse.
But Mr Burnham could benefit from his strong personal following across the North West, where he enjoys a net favourability rating of 24% according to pollster Ipsos. This is considerably higher than any of the party leaders or the Labour Party itself.
A Survation forecast suggested with Mr Burnham as a candidate, Labour is more likely to win than Reform UK, but without him, Mr Farageโs party is likely to take the seat.
Mr Burnham has been keen to downplay any leadership ambition, telling Channel 4 on Saturday that he is focused on winning a seat in Parliament, rather than ousting Sir Keir.
He said: “Itโs just not the issue. The issue is winning. Winning a by-election with what Iโm saying, you know, itโs not about, you know, necessarily the next thing.”
The Mayor of Greater Manchester said he had made a whole career fighting for people in the North West, adding: “Iโve taken that fight to another level as mayor and, yes, I will carry on taking that fight to the highest level.”
He said a “big change moment” is needed in British politics, following the bruising set of elections for Labour in England, Scotland, and Wales.
Mr Burnham elsewhere told the BBC he wants to run in the Makerfield by-election to “save” Labour.
