Deputy Labour leader Lucy Powell has signalled her support for Sir Keir Starmer on the eve of local elections but said she would back another bid from Andy Burnham to return to Westminster.
The Manchester Central MP said the Prime Minister was the right leader for this moment in time but sidestepped questions about whether he should lead the party into the next general election.
Voters are set to go to the polls on Thursday for the Scottish and Welsh parliaments, as well as for local councils across England.
Sir Keir is facing the prospect of losing hundreds of council seats across England, as well as Labour’s dominance in the Welsh parliament, the Senedd, in the biggest test of public opinion since the general election in 2024.
MPs are reportedly moving to oust the Prime Minister in the wake of the elections, in a bloodless coup modelled on the way Sir Tony Blair was encouraged to make way for his successor Gordon Brown.
Ms Powell was asked in a Sky News interview whether she would stand shoulder to shoulder with Sir Keir whatever the outcome of the local elections.
She said: “I’m going to continue to be the deputy leader, bringing the whole Labour Party together to make sure that we can get across our strong Labour message.
“And that’s with Keir as our leader, doing what he has been doing, which is making the right big calls for the country, whether it’s on Iran, whether it’s on Europe, whether it’s on bringing everyone together, on whether it’s on our response to this crisis.”
Asked if the Prime Minister was the right person to lead the party into the next general election, she said that Labour should “of course” think about the next election, but that it has a “real duty” right now to focus on how to turn the country around.
She said Sir Keir was an “incredibly resilient and stoic leader” who spends his time “getting on with the job”.
Meanwhile, she said she would “absolutely” like to see Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham return to Parliament and called him an “incredibly popular, relatable and effective politician”.
“He has helped to lead a transformation here in Greater Manchester. And I think if he wants to, he’s got a huge contribution to make to our national politics as well,” she said.
Mr Burnham, who is seen as a potential challenger to Sir Keir’s leadership, was blocked from standing for Labour in the Gorton and Denton by-election earlier this year.
“I think it’s a well known fact that I supported Andy, who wanted to be our candidate in a recent by-election,” Ms Powell said.
“Everybody knows that I supported him in wanting to do that. You know, so if Andy wants to come back to Parliament, I will continue to support him.”
One of the Prime Minister’s key allies, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden, earlier insisted that Sir Keir was in a “resolute” mood and that triggering a leadership contest would be a mistake.
Asked if the Prime Minister would fight any challenge to his leadership, Mr McFadden told Sky News: “Yes, and I hope there isn’t, because I don’t think it would be the answer to our problems.
“We’d be saying to the public, ‘just hold on for a few months while we go over here and sort something out’. That is not what the public wants to hear.
“I hope we do well tomorrow. But even if we don’t, the day after our job is to wake up, continue with doing our job and serve the country.”
Asked whether Sir Keir is ready to face down any challenges to his leadership, the senior Cabinet minister earlier said: “Yes, he is feeling that. He’s remarkably resolute, and he knows that to turn inward at this moment, or to turn inward after Thursday would be a mistake.
“He said he would put the country first when he fought the election a couple of years ago, and he will continue to put the country first.”
Sir Keir had earlier vowed to go into polling day “fighting for every vote” but acknowledged Labour could be in for a “challenge”.
He also wrote in Wednesday’s Mirror newspaper: “On Thursday, when you go to put your vote in the ballot box, there’s a clear choice on that piece of paper.
“Unity or division. Progress versus the politics of anger. The right plan for our country up against easy answers that will lead us nowhere.”
Wednesday marks the final full day of campaigning before polls open on Thursday across England, Scotland and Wales.
Almost 25,000 candidates are fighting to be elected to more than 5,000 seats on 136 councils across England.
In Scotland, all 129 seats are up for election in Holyrood, while voters in Wales will choose a set of 96 members of the Senedd.
