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Starmer set to block return of Burnham to parliament
The Independent
|October 02, 2025
The PM would stop Burnham from entering any shortlists to become an MP, says minister (PA)
Sir Keir Starmer and his chief of staff Morgan McSweeney would block Andy Burnham from getting on the shortlist of potential candidates for a parliamentary seat, scuppering any potential leadership challenge, a senior minister has claimed.
The Greater Manchester mayor has been accused privately by allies of "overplaying his hand" in positioning himself as a potential replacement for Sir Keir as leader of the Labour Party.
Despite a YouGov poll of Labour voters suggesting he would be a more popular prime minister than Sir Keir, by 33 points to 28, his hopes that the party conference in Liverpool would be a launchpad for any leadership bid fell flat this week.
He left before Sir Keir’s speech began, claiming he did not want to upstage the prime minister, and even withdrew from a fringe meeting where he was due to share a platform with rebel Labour MPs.
But, even if the groundswell of support had given him momentum, he would need to return to Westminster as an MP via a by-election in order to have a shot at the leadership.
This story is from the October 02, 2025 edition of The Independent.
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