Ex-Labour minister quits as MP, paving way for Burnham return...

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Former Labour minister Andrew Gwynne has announced he is standing down as an MP, paving the way for Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to potentially run in a by-election in his Gorton and Denton constituency.

In a statement, Gwynne said he had suffered "significant ill health" and had been advised by his GP that it wasn't safe for him to return to work as an MP.

Gwynne's resignation possibly opens up a path for Burnham to return to the House of Commons and make a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

Speaking earlier, Burnham did not rule out such a challenge but said people "shouldn't rush to conclusions", adding he was "very focused on my role as mayor".

Gwynne was elected as a Labour MP but was suspended from the party in 2025 after a reports he had sent offensive WhatsApp messages.

His departure from the House of Commons triggers a by-election in his Greater Manchester constituency of Gorton and Denton, which Labour won at the last election with a majority of 13,000.

Labour has not yet set a date for the by-election. Once the party's chief whip "moves a writ" in Parliament, the contest must be held within 21 to 27 working days.

There have been suggestions Burnham would like to replace Sir Keir as party leader - but he would only be able to enter any leadership race as a Labour MP.

If he decides to run in Gorton and Denton, he would need approval to run from Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) a body which is generally seen as being supportive of Sir Keir.

The BBC has been told that some of Sir Keir's backers would seek to stop Burnham from standing.

Separately, several Labour sources said they expected the NEC to object on the grounds that Burnham standing for Parliament would in turn trigger a election for the Greater Manchester mayoralty, which would be seen as a drain on party funds as well as politically risky.

It is also possible that the NEC would insist that there should be an all-women shortlist of possible Labour candidates for a by-election in the Commons because a majority of the party's MPs are currently men.

But others in the party questioned whether, if the NEC blocked Burnham from standing, his allies among Labour MPs could force party officials to overturn that decision.

One well-placed source has suggested that blocking Burnham would not be without political pain but the risk of a leadership contest would be worse.

If selected as Labour's candidate, he would still have to win a by-election in Gorton and Denton at a time when the party's popularity is low - although recent polling suggests Labour could hold on to the seat.

Burnham - a former cabinet minister who has twice stood for the Labour leadership without success - has previously not denied he could challenge Sir Keir, saying: "I'm not going to rule out what might or might not happen in the future."

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Andy Burnham seeks permission to stand in by-election



Andy Burnham has announced that he is seeking permission to stand in the upcoming Gorton and Denton parliamentary by-election.

If he won and became an MP, Burnham could mount a leadership challenge against Sir Keir Starmer but the BBC has been told that allies of the prime minister may try and block him from standing in the constituency.

Burnham is currently mayor of Greater Manchester and in a statement insisted that he wants to back the Labour government "not undermine it", adding that the decision had been "difficult".

The seat in Greater Manchester is vacant after Andrew Gwynne stood down on Friday as an MP on health grounds.

As a directly-elected mayor, Burnham has to get approval from Labour's ruling national executive committee before he can enter the race to be the party's candidate. That decision is expected on Sunday.

Several Labour MPs have reacted angrily to the suggestion that Burnham could be blocked from standing in the by-election.

Burnham had until Saturday afternoon to submit his application and on the dot of the 5pm deadline, he shared his letter, external to the NEC on social media, ending days of speculation over what he was planning.

In his letter, Burnham said there was a "direct threat to everything Greater Manchester has always been about from a brand of politics which seeks to pit people against each other".

"I see this by-election as the frontline of that fight for the Manchester Way and I feel I owe it to a city which has given me so much to lead it from the front, despite the risks involved."

He said he had left Westminster nearly a decade ago because he believed "it wasn't working for people in our part of the world" and that as mayor he had "tried to pioneer a different way of doing things".

However, he added that he believed Manchester "won't be able to be everything it should be without similar changes at a national level.

"This is why I feel the need to go back."

There has been speculation that the prime minister could face a leadership challenge, after the May elections, which will see votes take place in the Welsh Parliament, the Scottish Parliament and in some local councils in England.

Burnham has been touted as a possible leadership contender but can only mount a challenge if he is an MP in the Commons.