The government of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is in turmoil after Labour’s disastrous results in last week’s local elections. Starmer, who has been embroiled in controversy over the appointment of Jeffrey Epstein associate Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington, alongside frustration over slow domestic policy changes, has so far refused calls to step down.
However, more than 80 MPs have urged him to quit, while four junior ministers have resigned. Labour figures appear to be rallying around Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham in a potential bid to challenge Starmer.
Wes Streeting, a key Starmer rival who announced his resignation as Health Secretary on Thursday, publicly endorsed Burnham on Friday morning. “We need our best players on the pitch. There’s no question Andy Burnham is one of them,” Streeting wrote on X. “Andy is the best chance of winning, and that should trump factional interest or propping up one person.”
A special by-election would need to be held for Burnham to run in Makerfield, northwest England. Labour MP Josh Simons vacated his seat on Thursday to allow Burnham to stand. UK newspaper The Guardian reported on Friday that Deputy Labour Leader Lucy Powell backed Burnham’s return bid. “I fully support him wanting to get back into Parliament,” she said, adding there would be “absolutely no attempt to block” him. Joanne Thomas, General Secretary of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, said the union supported the move.
Special election
Despite the groundswell of support, Burnham’s path to No 10 Downing Street will not be straightforward. The party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), which selects Labour candidates, must first decide whether the mayor can run in the by-election. The NEC previously blocked Burnham from doing so, but many British MPs said they hope the body will allow it this time. A decision is expected in the coming days.
An election would then be held as early as June, with Nigel Farage of the hard-right Reform UK party pledging to “throw everything” at the contest. If he becomes an MP, Burnham would need to gather the backing of 81 Labour MPs—20% of the party in Parliament—to launch a challenge against Starmer. Any other candidate would also need the same number to enter the race, while Starmer would automatically be allowed to defend his role. Another potential candidate, Angela Rayner, said on Thursday that the tax authority had cleared her tax affairs, an episode previously seen as a barrier to a future leadership bid.
