Andy Burnham Would 'Probably' Have Won Gorton and Denton Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

Labour's deputy leader has indicated that Andy Burnham would have won the Gorton and Denton byelection, as she called for her party to make more use of the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

An Unexpected Result for the Green Party

Overcoming a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the last general election, Hannah Spencer, a community tradesperson, became the party's fifth MP on Friday. This happened in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century.

Reform UK's Matt Goodwin placed second, narrowly beating the official Labour contender, Angeliki Stogia.

Renewed Scrutiny Over Blocked Candidacy

The surprise result has sparked fresh debate of the party's controversial decision to prevent Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month.

Speaking to the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, stated, "He likely could have held the seat. I think definitely the Greens wouldn't have gone after the seat in the same way that they did."

Powell was the only member of Labour's top decision-making body to vote in favour of allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, voting against.

Collective Decision

However, she stated she understood "the group's decision" for the outcome, pointing to worries over triggering a separate election in Greater Manchester.

Powell also stressed that her party must draw inspiration from the sources of Burnham's widespread popularity in the region. She said people "see in him someone who is fighting for them, someone who is delivering those core principles and party pledges."

"It is essential we draw on that, leverage Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and consider how we could do that better nationally," she continued.

What Comes Next

Andy Burnham is reportedly considering another attempt at returning to parliament. One ally said, "With all the chaos and turmoil, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never."

To date, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has vowed to fight on despite calling the poll result "disappointing."

Internal Reactions

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

Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is set to caution about the party shifting leftward in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces new laws on tougher immigration measures next week.

A source close to the Home Secretary was quoted as saying, "The Labour government should not misinterpret the message from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are losing Muslim voters over immigration is simply incorrect."