𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

The signatories said there was “no legitimate reason” to block Burnham and asked for Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) to “re-evaluate”. Sir Keir Starmer defended the decision yesterday, claiming that triggering a mayoralty contest to replace Burnham would not be a correct use of resources. Sir Keir said: “Andy Burnham’s doing a great job as the Mayor of Manchester, but having an election for the Mayor of Manchester when it’s not necessary would divert our resources away from the elections that we must have, that we must fight and win.

“And that was the basis of the NEC decision.”

The previous mayoral election in Greater Manchester costs taxpayers approximately £4.7m.

Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Lucy Powell was the only NEC board member to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to contest the seat, which Labour won with a 13,000 majority in 2024.

They are however expected to face much stiffer competition in the forthcoming election from Reform UK on their right and the Greens on their left.

It had been hoped that Burnham’s national profile and popularity in the North West would increase the party’s chances of retaining the seat.

According to the Times, senior figures within the Labour Party now secretly expect to lose the seat following the decision to prevent Burnham from standing.

Burnham has long been seen as a potential leadership challenger to Starmer’s premiership, although his lack of a seat in Westminster currently prevents him from being able to launch a leadership bid.

The Greater Manchester mayor has said he was “disappointed” by the decision and “concerned about its potential impact on the important elections ahead of us”.

In a statement on social media, he insisted he would “return with full focus” to his mayoral job on Monday and urged unity in the face of “the divisive politics of Reform”.

Elsewhere, Nigel Farage announced Reform UK will reveal its candidate for the by-election on Tuesday.

He told a press conference in central London that his party’s chances are “considerably better” than before Labour blocked Mr Burnham from standing.