Andy Burnham Was 'Likely' to Have Secured Gorton and Denton Byelection, States Labour Deputy Leader

Labour's deputy leader has indicated that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, as she called for her party to leverage the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

A Surprise Victory for the Greens

Overturning a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a local plumber, became the 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, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy

The unexpected outcome 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, stated, "Andy Burnham likely could have held the seat. I think certainly 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 the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Accepting Responsibility

However, she stated she understood "the group's decision" for the ruling, citing concern about 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 "see in him someone who is on their side, someone who is implementing those core principles and Labour policies."

"We have to utilise that insight, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and consider how we could replicate that success across the country," she added.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out having another go at returning to parliament. A source close to him commented, "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 yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite calling the poll result "disheartening."

Internal Reactions

Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a wake-up call" for the party.

In contrast, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as the government proposes legislation for stricter border controls next week.

An insider was reported stating, "The Labour government should not misinterpret the message from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."