The Greater Manchester Mayor Would 'Probably' Have Won the Recent Byelection, States Labour Number Two

Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she urged her party to make more use of the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Greens

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

The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin placed second, just ahead of the official Labour contender, Angeliki Stogia.

Renewed Scrutiny Over Blocked Candidacy

The surprise result has sparked renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month.

Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "He probably would have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the same way that they did."

Powell was the sole member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with eight others, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move.

Collective Decision

However, she stated she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over necessitating a separate election in Greater Manchester.

Powell also emphasized that her party must learn from the reasons for Burnham's strong support in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is on their side, someone who is delivering those core principles and Labour policies."

"We have to utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and reflect on how we could do that better nationally," she continued.

What Comes Next

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

So far, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite labelling the poll result "disappointing."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party.

In contrast, the Home Secretary is set to caution about the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces legislation for tougher immigration measures next week.

An insider was quoted as saying, "The Labour government should not learn the wrong lessons from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."