The Greater Manchester Mayor Was 'Likely' to Have Secured the Recent Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

The party's second-in-command has suggested that Andy Burnham could have triumphed in the recent Manchester byelection, while she called for her party to make more use of the popular Greater Manchester mayor.

A Surprise Victory for the Greens

Overturning a substantial 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a local plumber, was elected as the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for almost one hundred years.

The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin finished second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.

Fresh Questions Over Candidate Decision

The unexpected outcome has prompted renewed questioning of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month.

In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He probably would have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the manner that they did."

Powell was the sole member of Labour's ruling national executive committee to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move.

Collective Decision

However, she told the BBC she accepted "the group's decision" for the outcome, citing concern about necessitating a separate election in Greater Manchester.

Powell also stressed that her party needed to learn from the reasons for Burnham's widespread popularity in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is delivering those core principles and Labour policies."

"We have to draw on that, make use of Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and reflect on how we could do that better nationally," she continued.

What Comes Next

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out another attempt at returning to parliament. One ally said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be unwise to say he would never."

So far, Burnham himself has not publicly spoken on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite labelling the poll result "disappointing."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, called the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party.

In contrast, the Home Secretary is expected to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as the government proposes legislation for tougher immigration measures next week.

An insider was quoted as saying, "The Labour government should not learn the wrong lessons from its electoral setback. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is just plain wrong."