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.

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Burnham's application has been blocked. Allegedly, because it would be too expensive to stage and fight a Mayoral election to replace him.

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More detail...

Andy Burnham's bid to return as MP blocked by Labour's ruling body

Andy Burnham has been blocked from standing as a candidate for an upcoming parliamentary by-election in Gorton and Denton by Labour's ruling body.

As a directly elected mayor, Burnham had to get approval from Labour's national executive committee (NEC), after he applied to be a candidate on Saturday.

Labour sources have told the BBC lots of concerns were raised about the costs of an election to replace Burnham as Greater Manchester mayor and the "prospect of a divisive campaign".

But allies of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer feared Burnham - a former cabinet minister - could mount a leadership challenge, should he return to Westminster.

The move is likely to infuriate Labour MPs and some ministers who said local party members should have had the option of choosing the Greater Manchester mayor as the candidate.

It is a big political gamble by allies of the prime minister and risks inflaming tensions within the party, which is consistently trailing Reform UK in national opinion polls.

One senior Labour source who had been supportive of Burnham's candidacy said: "They're gambling the PM's whole premiership on winning a very hard by-election without their best candidate. It is madness."

The decision was made by 10 members of the NEC, including Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, party chair Ellie Reeves and the prime minister himself on Sunday morning.

NEC sources told the BBC the vote was 8-1 in favour of blocking Burnham's candidacy.

The prime minister was among those who voted to block Burnham from standing.

Mahmood abstained as the chair, while Labour's deputy leader Lucy Powell voted to allow him to stand.

Sir Keir's allies say Burnham is doing "a very good job" as mayor of Greater Manchester, adding a mayoral by election "would cost the party hundreds of thousands of pounds" and "cost the country millions of pounds during a cost-of-living crisis".

The prime minister's supporters were worried Reform UK "would outspend us ten to one" during the by-election campaign.

The argument those who blocked Burnham intend to make publicly is that during a period of geopolitics dominating the headlines and deep concerns about the cost of living at home, there would be no appetite in the country for a "return to political psychodramas of the Tory years".

There was "overwhelming support" in the meeting "for upholding clear Labour Party rules preventing mayors and PCCs standing in by-elections", a source said.

Earlier, Mahmood told the BBC allowing elected mayors to run as candidates in parliamentary by-elections had "organisational implications" for the party.

A mayoral election in Greater Manchester could also be costly for the taxpayer, with the last one costing about £4.7m.

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Andy Burnham 'disappointed' after bid to become MP blocked



Andy Burnham has said he is "disappointed" after being blocked from standing as a candidate for the upcoming parliamentary by-election in Gorton and Denton by Labour's ruling body.

As a directly elected mayor, Burnham had to get approval from Labour's national executive committee (NEC), after he applied to be a candidate on Saturday.

But Labour said the party had decided to deny him permission to stand to "avoid an unnecessary mayoral election, which would use substantial amounts of taxpayers' money and resources".

Burnham, a former minister, is widely seen as a potential leadership challenger to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer should he return to Westminster.

Writing on X, Burnham expressed concern about the ruling's "impact on the important elections ahead of us", and said he would return with "full focus" to his role as mayor.

"I decided to put myself forward to prevent the divisive politics of Reform from damaging that. We are stronger together and let's stay that way," Burnham said.

However, he criticised how the ruling was made known on Sunday, saying: "The fact that the media was informed of the NEC decision before I was tells you everything you need to know about the way the Labour Party is being run these days".

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

The move to block Burnham has infuriated Labour MPs and is likely to anger some ministers who said local party members should have had the option of choosing the Greater Manchester mayor as the candidate.

It is a big political gamble by allies of the prime minister and risks inflaming tensions within the party, which is consistently trailing Reform UK in national opinion polls.

One senior Labour source who had been supportive of Burnham's candidacy said: "They're gambling the PM's whole premiership on winning a very hard by-election without their best candidate. It is madness."

Labour MP and former shadow chancellor John McDonnell told the BBC he was "absolutely furious" about the decision and suggested the prime minister did not "understand the depth of anger there will be amongst our members about this".

"I think it shows weakness and cowardice," McDonnell said, describing the move as "factionalism gone wild".

He said he had messaged Starmer to tell him "if he thinks this strengthens his position, I think it will used to hasten his demise if he's not careful".

He said it was an "insult to people's intelligence" to claim the decision had been made because of the difficulty and expense of finding a new mayor of Greater Manchester.

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Labour pick Angeliki Stogia for Gorton by-election



Angeliki Stogia has been selected as the Labour Party candidate for the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election.

The Manchester councillor was chosen to represent the party after Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham was denied permission to enter the contest a week ago.

Earlier on Saturday, Burnham posted on X: "Big congrats Angeliki! I know you will do a great job. I will be there for you whenever you need me."

The by-election on 26 February in the Greater Manchester constituency was prompted by the resignation of former MP Andrew Gwynne on health grounds.

As her candidacy was announced, Stogia a crowd of party activists that she was "so looking forward to going out on the doorstep and winning this for Labour".

Currently a Labour councillor for the Whalley Range ward, she added: "I am absolutely thrilled and excited, and I want to thank everyone who came to the hustings.

"I am a proud Mancunian woman. I have walked the streets of this constituency."

Flanked by Labour party chairwoman Anna Turley and deputy leader Lucy Powell, Stogia said: "This is about Manchester.

"Manchester is a city united, we are rejecting division."

She added that she felt this was "a moment of choice for Gorton and Denton - between a community that stands united or politics that divides neighbour from neighbour".

"I'm on the side of unity, fairness and hope," she said.

Stogia previously stood for Labour at the 2024 general election in the constituency of Chester South and Eddisbury, where she was defeated by the Conservatives.

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"I'm on the side of unity, fairness and hope," she said.

Then you're in the wrong party, love!

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Workers Party of Britain not contesting by-election



The Workers Party of Britain has said it has taken the "difficult decision" not to contest the Gorton and Denton by-election.

The party, led by George Galloway, said it was "in the best interests of the working-class" to withdraw from the election.

In a statement, it said it would not choose a candidate for the Greater Manchester seat from the four it had been considering.

At the general election in July 2024, Galloway's party got 10.3% of the vote and came fourth.

The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Andrew Gwynne, who said he was stepping down for health reasons that had been aggravated in the last year by the fall-out from leaked messages from a controversial WhatsApp group.

Gwynne secured 50.8% of the vote, enough for a majority of more than 13,000 ahead of Reform UK (14.1%). The Greens, on 13.2%, came third.

The Conservatives (7.9%) and Liberal Democrats (3.8%) came in fifth and sixth respectively.

In a statement, the Workers Party of Britain said Labour had "woefully failed the people of the constituency".

The party claimed Labour was the "enemy of the British people", adding that British people had become "poorer" while the government spent money on "a wasteful war" in Ukraine. It also criticised the planned introduction of digital ID cards.

It added: "This by-election was triggered by Labour in an attempt to replace Starmer with a new acceptable face.

"Whoever wins, if Labour lose, Starmer must resign."