Andy Burnham Was 'Likely' to Have Won the Recent Byelection, States Labour Deputy Leader

Labour's deputy leader has suggested that Andy Burnham could have won the Gorton and Denton byelection, as she urged her party to leverage the popular Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Green Party

Overcoming a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the previous general election, Hannah Spencer, a local plumber, was elected as the party's fifth MP on Friday. This occurred in an area that had elected Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.

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

Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision

The unexpected outcome has prompted fresh debate of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month.

In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "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 only member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Collective Decision

However, she told the BBC she accepted "the group's decision" for the ruling, pointing to worries over necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester.

Powell also emphasized that her party needed to learn from the sources of Burnham's strong support in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is delivering those Labour values and Labour policies."

"We have to utilise that insight, leverage Andy Burnham, but also draw on that and consider how we could replicate that success nationally," she added.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is reportedly considering having another go at becoming an MP again. One ally said, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never."

To date, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the Gorton and Denton outcome. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite calling the poll result "disappointing."

Internal Reactions

Angela Rayner, a key figure on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party.

Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is expected to caution about the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces new laws on stricter border controls next week.

A source close to the Home Secretary was quoted as saying, "The party should not learn the wrong lessons from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is just plain wrong."