Published: September 25, 2025 at 12:21 pm
The campaign for Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to replace Keir Starmer as Prime Minister is gathering momentum.
In an interview with The Telegraph, he admitted that several Labour MPs had privately urged him to challenge under-fire PM Starmer.
Should he proceed with a third push for leadership of the Labour Party, the ex-MP for Leigh and former New Labour Cabinet Minister would have to resign as GM mayor then contest and win a parliamentary byelection for a Commons seat.
There’s been growing speculation that he could replace Andrew Gwynne as MP for Gorton and Denton – should the seat become vacant.
Burnham told the New Statesman that wholesale change was needed to see off an existential threat to the party.
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a column suggesting Starmer needed Burnham’s help to transform Labour’s fortunes – but now it looks like Burnham’s role would be more of a successor.