Andy Burnham Was 'Likely' to Have Secured Gorton and Denton Byelection, States Labour Number Two

The party's second-in-command has indicated that Andy Burnham would have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, while she called for her party to leverage the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

A Surprise Victory for the Green Party

Overcoming a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the previous general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, was elected as the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had elected Labour MPs for nearly a century.

The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision

The unexpected outcome has sparked fresh debate of the party's choice to prevent Andy Burnham from contesting the seat last month.

In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "Andy Burnham likely could have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the manner 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, voting against.

Collective Decision

However, she told the BBC she understood "collective responsibility" for the outcome, 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 "see in him someone who is fighting for them, someone who is implementing those Labour values 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 replicate that success across the country," she added.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at returning to parliament. One ally said, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never."

So far, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken 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 set to warn against the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces legislation for stricter border controls next week.

An insider was reported stating, "The party should not misinterpret the message from its electoral setback. The idea that we are losing Muslim voters over immigration is just plain wrong."