𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Sir Keir Starmer should not fight a leadership race with Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting, Labour MPs believe. Former minister Jess Phillips said Sir Keir should not try to cling on in Downing Street.

And Josh Simons, who stepped down to let Mr Burnham run for power, said Labour MPs should unite behind the Greater Manchester Mayor if he wins the Makerfield by-election. Ms Phillips told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg she believes there should be a leadership race, but when asked if Sir Keir Starmer should stand, she simply said: “In my opinion, no.” Mr Simons said the party should “come together” to back Mr Burnham.

He told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “If Andy wins the by-election, my view is that the different bits of the party should come together behind Andy.”

Asked if that would mean “the end of Keir Starmer”, Mr Simons responded: “By implication, yeah.”

Mr Simons denied reports that he decided to give up his seat for Mr Burnham a year ago.

He told the BBC: “That’s not quite what the report says. It says I had a pint with Andy Burnham and we talked about politics, which is absolutely true.”

Mr Simons said he made the decision “two days ago” after discussing it with his wife.

He said: “It’s been incredibly fast for me.

“It wasn’t just me, it was my wife. We did this as a family, because it’s about the sacrifices on behalf of the family.

“It was about, ‘what does Andy think that he’s going to do to the Labour Party and to the country if he wins this by-election?’, and that’s what matters.”

Kemi Badenoch has warned that Mr Burnham will plunge the country into economic chaos by borrowing more, leading to higher mortgages for families.

The Tory leader said the Greater Manchester Mayor is only popular because he “hasn’t had to do anything”.

Responding to questions on whether Mr Burnham might be a “real threat” if he becomes Labour leader, Mrs Badenoch told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “He’s only popular because he hasn’t had to do anything.

“Politics is about making difficult decisions. As soon as he comes in and realises there’s no money to throw about, he’s going to become unpopular.

“Andy Burnham is talking about increasing borrowing. That’s going to hit everybody’s mortgages, that’s going to hit borrowing costs for this country.

“It’s going to put billions on debt interest – you’ll be paying a Burnham premium. I do not think that that’s going to make it popular at all.”

The Mayor of Greater Manchester, who wants to replace Sir Keir as Prime Minister, said he wants public control over “life’s essentials”, including energy and water providers, as well as a surge in council house building.

Mrs Badenoch added: “The problem is not just Kier Starmer or Andy Burnham or Wes Streeting. They’re all as bad as each other. I can deal with any of them. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Angela Rayner or Ed Miliband.

“They’ve got no plan for the country.

“They think winning an election is the same as governing a country, and that is why I know that the next three years, we will have the Labour Government, they won’t call an election, because turkeys don’t vote for Christmas, but they’ll be making everything worse. And that’s why I have an alternative agenda.”

Asked about Mr Burnham and Mr Streeting both plotting to reverse Brexit, Mrs Badenoch said: “This is exactly what I’m talking about.

“The country wants us to make the best of Brexit. Make the best of leaving the EU. The idea of starting again, going backwards, having all of these negotiations, this is a sign of a Labour Party that does not have a plan for the country.

“So they want to go back and re-fight wars which were settled a long time ago. And I’m saying that we’re the only ones who have a plan to make the best of making the best of people.”

Mr Streeting and Mr Burnham have sparked fury by vowing to reverse Brexit.

In a speech on Saturday, Mr Streeting called for the UK to rejoin the European Union, saying that “Britain’s future lies with Europe”.

And Mr Burnham has indicated he also wants to rejoin.

In an interview with the Mirror, the Mayor of Greater Manchester also set out his policy goals.

He said: “First, reindustrialisation of all parts of this constituency with reform of education to make technical education the equal of the academic university route.

“Number two, stronger public control of life’s essentials. Energy, housing, water, transport. To make life affordable again. To get stronger control on public spending – if you’re chasing rents in the private sector through the benefits system, you’ve got a problem.”

Mr Burnham also called for a post-war-style council house building, saying: “There is no stability for Britain until we end the housing crisis.”