Andy Burnham's decisive victory in the Makerfield by-election has intensified calls for Keir Starmer to step aside as Labour leader. The Greater Manchester mayor secured 54% of the vote, with a majority of 9,231 – nearly double that of his predecessor. Reform UK finished second, around 20 percentage points behind.
Speaking before polls closed, a Downing Street source acknowledged doubts about the prime minister's future, saying: 'Keir will fight on… although, that might depend on the size of the majority.' Louise Haigh, the Labour MP who helped run Burnham's campaign, said: 'I hope that [Starmer] will consider an orderly and managed transition.'
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy called the result 'astonishing', adding: 'Andy has potentially shown tonight what change the Labour party can bring.' Burnham himself said: 'We must now take this up and put this country back on the right path.'
Burnham's allies claim he has the support of more than the 81 MPs needed to trigger a leadership contest. Polls suggest Labour would be about six percentage points higher if Burnham were prime minister, though even his supporters accept he would face the same policy dilemmas as Starmer.
Joe Twyman of Deltapoll said: 'In the short term, he may well manage a bounce in the polls if Burnham becomes prime minister, but longer term, will voters perceive him and his Labour government to have made a noticeable improvement in their lives?'
Starmer congratulated Burnham on social media, writing: 'Voters chose Labour's campaign of hope and optimism over division and hate.'
