The Greater Manchester Mayor Was 'Likely' to Have Won the Recent Byelection, States Labour Number Two

The party's second-in-command has suggested that Andy Burnham could have triumphed in the Gorton and Denton byelection, while she urged her party to leverage the popular Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Greens

Overturning a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had elected Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.

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

Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision

The surprise result has prompted fresh debate of the party's controversial decision to block Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month.

Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He probably would have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the manner that they did."

Powell was the only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to support allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Collective Decision

However, she stated she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over necessitating a mayoral byelection 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 on their side, someone who is implementing those Labour values and Labour policies."

"It is essential we utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and reflect on how we could replicate that success nationally," she added.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out another attempt at becoming an MP again. A source close to him said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never."

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

Internal Reactions

Angela Rayner, a key figure on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party.

In contrast, the Home Secretary is expected to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as the government proposes legislation for tougher immigration measures next week.

An insider was reported stating, "The party should not learn the wrong lessons from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."