Union chief backs Rayner for PM if Labour comes third in Gorton

SIR Keir Starmer should stand down if Labour comes third in the Gorton and Denton by-election, a trade union leader has said as she backed Angela Rayner to replace him.

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Maryam Eslamdoust, general secretary of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA), is the first leader of one of Labour's affiliated unions to publicly back an alternative to Sir Keir as party leader.

She warned that a leadership challenge could come as soon as the end of February, after a key by-election in which Labour risks falling behind Reform UK and the Greens.

Ms Eslamdoust told the Daily Telegraph: “If we were to come third, I think Keir’s time will be up.”