Sir Keir Starmer risks angering Labour supporters after refusing to commit himself to personally campaigning in a crunch by-election. His party faces an uphill battle later this month in the vote to choose a new MP in Gorton and Denton.
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is expected to be a major challenge for the key parliamentary seat. Reform’s candidate, TV presenter and academic Matt Goodwin, has said the by-election is a referendum on Sir Keir. Polls show the race is neck and neck for the Greater Manchester seat.
The Prime Minister appeared to dodge the question when asked if he was planning to campaign in Gorton and Denton ahead of the February 26 vote.
Speaking to reporters en route to Tokyo, where he held talks with new Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi, Sir Keir said his party would set out its campaign following the selection of Angeliki Stogia as its candidate, which was announced on Saturday.
“I’ve been campaigning all the time across the country,” he said. “In relation to the by-election, it is very much and very clearly now a by-election between Labour and Reform on key principles.”
The Prime Minister then pointed out that far-Right activist Tommy Robinson has endorsed Mr Goodwin.
He added: “I see that Tommy Robinson, I think, has just come out in support of Matt Goodwin, the Reform candidate.
“That tells you everything about the politics they intend to inject into this by-election, the politics of poisonous division, so we can see exactly where that’s going.”
Sir Keir said his party would “fight for renewal, for inclusive communities and bringing people together, and for true patriotism against the plastic patriotism of Reform”.
Asked again if he will go to the constituency to support the campaign, he added: “I will be campaigning across the country, as I always do.”
The Green Party has said it was the main option for voters wanting to stop Reform as polls suggest support for Sir Keir’s party is crumbling.
Labour won the seat with more than half the vote – 18,555 – in 2024, with Reform UK coming second on 5,142 votes, narrowly beating the Greens at 4,810.