The Greater Manchester Mayor Would 'Probably' Have Won Gorton and Denton Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

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

A Surprise Victory for the Greens

Overturning a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the previous general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, was elected as the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.

Reform UK's Matt Goodwin finished second, narrowly beating the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Fresh Questions Over Blocked Candidacy

The surprise result 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, stated, "Andy Burnham 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 support allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Accepting Responsibility

However, she told the BBC she accepted "collective responsibility" for the ruling, citing concern about necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester.

Powell also stressed that her party must 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 delivering those core principles and party pledges."

"We have to draw on that, leverage Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and consider how we could replicate that success across the country," she added.

What Comes Next

Andy Burnham is reportedly considering having another go at becoming an MP again. 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."

To date, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite calling the poll result "disheartening."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a key figure on Labour's left, described 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 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 just plain wrong."