Andy Burnham wants to build a “groundswell” of support from Labour MPs to replace Sir Keir Starmer in time for next May’s local elections, an insider has told The i Paper.
The Mayor of Greater Manchester has faced repeated accusations he is plotting a leadership bid as a result of his public criticism of the Government.
Burnham has not denied his ambition to one day lead the Labour Party, having already stood twice for the job – but has insisted he remains supportive of Starmer’s Government for now.
However, a source close to Burnham has told The i Paper his desire is far more serious than is being admitted publicly.
“Andy is absolutely bang up for it at the right time,” the insider said. “He’s all over it.”
The i Paper understands that Burnham is already in talks with his closest confidantes about forming a campaign team to launch an attempt to oust Starmer after the May elections, when Labour is expected to lose control of Wales and haemorrhage support in councils across the country.
It is understood Burnham has been talking of next May’s local elections, when Labour are on course to suffer potentially bruising losses to Reform UK, as the time to move.
“Burnham’s team think they [Labour] will lose Wales,” the source said. “They will no longer be seen as strong, Keir will be at his weakest and it will be time to go for it.
“But it’s all about timing, he needs the support. Some are saying ‘go now’ – others are saying ‘don’t’. It’s hard for him to get a read of it.”
Although some of Burnham’s allies have shown general support for him, few Labour MPs have gone public with an outright call for him to be the party’s new leader (Photo: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty)Burnham’s recent public remarks – including his suggestion that the Government needs to stop being “in hock to the bond markets” – have been seized upon by critics, including allies of Starmer.
The Prime Minister compared Burnham’s thinking to Liz Truss’s disastrous spell in No 10 which led to a spike in interest rates.
Although some of Burnham’s allies have shown general support for him, few Labour MPs have gone public with an outright call for him to be the party’s new leader at this point.
An incoming groundswell?
The former health secretary is understood to be worried by the possibility of quitting his job as mayor to launch a leadership bid that could ultimately fail.
The insider said that while Burnham has been contacted privately by MPs, as he confirmed in a recent interview with The Daily Telegraph, he wants there to be a “groundswell of opinion”.
“He needs them [MPs] to roll the pitch,” the source said. “He doesn’t want to lose being mayor and then lose the leadership for a third time.”
Much has been made of the fact that Burnham needs to be a sitting MP to launch a leadership bid, and that he may be blocked from doing so by Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney who is said to have tight control of Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC).
However, Burnham’s team do not see this as a stumbling block, The i Paper has been told.
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“McSweeney has got control of the exec, but he hasn’t got control of the members,” the source said.
“Andy thinks that if they tried to block him getting a seat there would a bonfire, they think that’s not a problem.”
The insider claims Burnham’s team have identified both Andrew Gwynne in Gorton and Denton and Marie Rimmer in St Helens South and Whiston as MPs who may consider giving up their seat for him.
But neither have agreed to at the moment.
“They think that because it’s St Helens, he’s a local lad and he could fight off Reform,” the source told The i Paper.
The election of Lucy Powell, the Labour MP for Manchester Central, as deputy leader is also seen as crucial to pave the way for Burnham.
Powell has tried to distance herself from the idea she is a “proxy” for a Burnham leadership bid.
But the insider said Burnham sees her as “key” to helping him get into power. “He trusts her massively,” the source added.
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