Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, speaking at a fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, October 2025 (Credit: Milo Chandler/Alamy Live News)
4 min read
Allies of Keir Starmer have told PoliticsHome that Andy Burnham will not be allowed to stand as the Labour candidate in the upcoming by-election in a newly vacated Greater Manchester seat.
Andrew Gwynne, the Labour MP for Gorton and Denton, confirmed on Thursday that he is standing down on health grounds.
The former health minister was suspended from the Labour Party in February last year after offensive WhatsApp messages he sent were leaked, and since then, he has been the subject of a parliamentary standards investigation.
The announcement has triggered widespread speculation over whether Burnham – widely seen as a potential successor to Starmer despite not currently being an MP – will now seek a route to the Commons via Gwynne’s constituency.
Whether Burnham decides in favour of attempting to become Labour’s candidate is considered a major moment for Starmer’s premiership.
At the time of writing, Burnham has not said whether he wants to be Labour’s candidate in the by-election to elect Gwynne’s successor. Recent opinion polls have found the Manchester mayor to be significantly more popular with the public than Starmer. While Labour won the seat with a majority of over 13,000 in 2024, polling suggests it is now neck-and-neck between Labour and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
However, PoliticsHome understands that the current leadership has sent a “clear message” to key supporters within the party that Burnham will not be allowed to stand as Labour’s candidate in Gorton and Denton.
Some have suggested he could be blocked by Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) drawing up a list of female candidates only for Gorton and Denton.
A senior Labour source has told PoliticsHome that the party could decide to run an all-BAME (Black and minority ethnic) shortlist of candidates.
An anti-Burnham Labour MP said: “The idea you can bully the Labour Party machine into spending money we don’t have, spending time we don’t have and taking a risk we don’t want to take, to allow someone a shot at pushing the PM out of the window? It doesn’t make any sense at all.”
They added: “Given the international context Keir is dealing with, it’s nearly criminal.”
Labour MPs supportive of the idea that Burnham should join the parliamentary party have said the Labour NEC may be willing to block Burnham, but they do not believe the leadership has the political strength within the party to pull off such a move.
Even if it were to be successful, they warn that it could be a lose-lose situation for the Prime Minister.
“I basically think if they block him, then ironically it’s the end for Starmer,” said one Labour MP. “It just won’t be Burnham that benefits.”
Labour peer Baroness Lister, who was a member of the Forde inquiry panel that was commissioned by Starmer and looked into factionalism within the party, criticised briefings suggesting Burnham could be blocked.
She told PoliticsHome: “Anonymous and divisive briefings from the NEC today suggest that little has been learnt from the Forde Report on party culture that I was part of producing.
“In a by-election in Gorton and Denton, party members – and local people – must be afforded the opportunity to select and elect the strongest possible Labour candidate.”
A date for the by-election has not yet been confirmed. There have been suggestions that it could coincide with the 7 May local elections.
As a sitting mayor, Burnham would first have to seek permission from Labour’s NEC to be able to stand in the by-election. PoliticsHome understands that this would likely be a decision made by the small NEC officers group, which includes Starmer himself.
To conduct the selection, a panel of three NEC members would be appointed on the recommendation of Labour general secretary Hollie Ridley’s office. The panel would then be responsible for longlisting and shortlisting candidates.
By convention, there is usually a trade union representative on the three-member panel.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “We look forward to local residents in Gorton and Denton soon having the opportunity to get the representation they deserve with a new Labour MP.
“While Reform fill their ranks with more and more Tories who failed the country, people living in Gorton and Denton will soon have the opportunity to elect a local champion and Labour MP who will be relentlessly focused on tackling the cost of living, cutting NHS waiting lists and bringing investment and jobs to the local community.”
