‘No other plan comes close’: Labour MPs turn to Burnham as pressure mounts on Starmer

Leadership options in focus amid fears over election losses, with allies of Greater Manchester mayor stepping up preparations for a comeback

• Andy Burnham has plan to return to Westminster ‘within weeks’, allies say

When the eyes of Westminster were on the committee rooms and voting lobbies of parliament this week, Keir Starmer’s political future was being decided elsewhere.

Wes Streeting and Angela Rayner were buttering up Labour MPs in the Strangers’ Bar in parliament as colleagues spoke of their “existential” fear about the crucial elections next week.