Andy Burnham plots Westminster return warning Labour has ‘let people down’

Andy Burnham has moved a step closer towards a return to Westminster after confirming that winning the forthcoming Makerfield by-election would be the “first stage” in a wider bid to reshape Labour.

The Greater Manchester mayor has repeatedly distanced himself from Sir Keir Starmer’s government, criticised Britain’s economic direction over the past 40 years and positioned himself as the candidate capable of reconnecting Labour with working-class voters drifting towards Reform UK. 

“I will take that fight as high as I can take that fight,” Burnham told ITV News on Saturday.

The intervention comes amid a rapidly escalating Labour leadership crisis after heavy local election losses earlier this month intensified pressure on Starmer’s premiership.

Former health secretary Wes Streeting also used the weekend to confirm he would stand in any future leadership contest, saying Labour needed “a proper contest with the best candidates on the field”.

But culture secretary Lisa Nandy attempted to play down the growing speculation around Starmer’s future, dismissing talk of an imminent leadership challenge as “froth and nonsense” and insisting the government remained focused on delivering its agenda.

Nandy also defended Burnham’s planned return to Westminster, describing the Greater Manchester mayor as “a huge asset to the Labour Party”.

The prospect of a bruising internal battle is already exposing deep ideological divides inside Labour over Brexit, economic policy and how to respond to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

Burnham, who is seeking selection in the Makerfield by-election after local MP Josh Simmons agreed to step aside, argued Britain had been on “the wrong path” since the 1980s, blaming deindustrialisation, deregulation and privatisation for weakening living standards. 

“The path that Britain has been on for 40 years, in my view, has been the wrong path,” he said. 

But his comments are likely to unsettle business leaders and markets already wary of political instability and any hint Labour could shift further left economically.

Labour splits widen over Brexit and Reform threat

The battle for Labour’s future is also reopening arguments over Europe that the party has largely avoided since the 2019 election defeat.

Streeting described Brexit as a “catastrophic mistake” and said Britain should eventually rejoin the European Union, calling for a “new special relationship” with Europe. 

“In the long-term there is a case for that, but I’m not advocating that in this by-election,” Burnham said when asked about rejoining the EU, particularly given Makerfield voted for Brexit and Reform UK swept local council wards across the constituency earlier this month

The political calculations reflect growing panic inside Labour about Reform’s momentum in traditional working-class heartlands.

Burnham openly acknowledged why voters were abandoning Labour.

“100 per cent,” he said when asked whether he understood support for Reform. “My party and other parties have let them down.”

Despite presenting himself as a change candidate, Burnham also attempted to reassure markets rattled by reports that borrowing costs hit fresh highs amid mounting leadership speculation.