Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has found himself at the center of a political storm after suggestions surfaced that he might challenge Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer for the Labour Party leadership. The prospect has sparked a sharp backlash among Labour MPs, with many voicing disapproval and some even questioning Burnham’s motivations and timing. As the Labour Party faces internal challenges and looks ahead to crucial elections in 2026, the debate over Burnham’s ambitions has exposed both divisions and anxieties within the party’s ranks.
According to the BBC, Burnham has openly criticized the Labour government in a series of interviews, arguing that the party lacks a "proper plan for the country." He revealed that he had been contacted by Labour MPs urging him to consider a leadership bid. "People have contacted me throughout the summer – yeah. I’m not going to say to you that that hasn’t happened, but as I say, it’s more a decision for those people than it is for me," Burnham told the Daily Telegraph. He went further, accusing Downing Street of fostering a "climate of fear" and calling for "wholesale change" to address what he described as an "existential" threat to Labour.
Burnham’s policy proposals have attracted attention for their boldness. In interviews with national newspapers, he advocated for higher council tax on expensive homes in London and the South East, £40 billion in borrowing to build council houses, income tax cuts for lower earners, and a 50p tax rate for the highest-paid. He also criticized government ministers for being "in hock to the bond markets," a reference to the government’s self-imposed rules on spending and borrowing. These ideas, while resonant with some, have drawn the ire of party leadership and many MPs.
Prime Minister Starmer, when asked about Burnham’s claims, declined to engage directly with the speculation. Speaking to BBC North West, he said, "I’m not going to get drawn into commenting on the personal ambitions of the mayor." However, Starmer was quick to defend the government’s fiscal discipline, stating, "I do want to be really clear about our fiscal rules, because economic stability is the foundation stone of this government. It was three years this week ago that we had the Liz Truss experiment where she abandoned fiscal rules in her case for tax cuts, and the result was a disaster for working people. The same would be true if you abandoned fiscal rules in favour of spending. And I’m not prepared to ever have that inflicted on working people again."
The BBC reported that it reached out to 320 of the 399 Labour MPs in Parliament for comment. While many expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s performance, the majority were opposed to Burnham’s leadership ambitions. Some MPs were openly hostile. One described Burnham as someone who "seems to promote himself every time there’s a perceived crack in the wall… a bit like Japanese knotweed." A government minister dismissed Burnham’s support base as "a few disgruntled MPs" and said the rest wanted him to "focus on his actual job in Manchester."
Other MPs, while less caustic, still rejected the idea of a leadership challenge. One MP told the BBC it would be "madness" to replace the prime minister so soon after last year’s general election. Another minister called Burnham’s comments "completely illogical and utterly self-indulgent." Markus Campbell-Savours, Labour MP for Penrith and Solway, said bluntly, "There are none. He won’t be in Parliament anytime soon. So if there really are colleagues who think he’s going to swoop in and save the day, they need to give their head a wobble." Sojan Joseph, Labour MP for Ashford, echoed this, stating, "Andy Burnham is doing a very good job as mayor of Manchester and he is best placed to focus on that, rather than speculate on leadership ambitions."
Yet, there are glimmers of support for Burnham within the party. Some MPs, speaking off the record, acknowledged that Burnham offers "something different," and that his vision is "severely lacking at the minute." One veteran backbencher remarked, "It’s the worst kept secret in politics that Andy would love to be back in Parliament and of course he had his eyes laser focussed on the top job." There is a sense among some MPs, particularly those from outside London, that Burnham could be the "potential saviour of their own positions come the next election." Another backbencher noted it was "good" that Burnham had "come out with some constructive ideas."
Despite these pockets of support, the obstacles facing Burnham are formidable. Having left Parliament in 2017, he would need to secure a seat in the House of Commons before launching any leadership bid—a process fraught with political hurdles. Even if he succeeded, he would need the backing of 80 Labour MPs to mount a challenge against Starmer. As HuffPost UK highlighted, some Labour MPs remain skeptical of Burnham’s intentions, with one saying, "If Andy thinks that we are all waiting for him to ride to the rescue then he is very much mistaken. There isn’t a lot of support for a person who ran away from Westminster when the going got tough."
Party leadership has also weighed in. Housing secretary Steve Reed, a prominent Starmer loyalist, dismissed Burnham as a "regional politician" and insisted he was "committed to seeing out his full term" as mayor, which ends in 2028. Reed praised Starmer’s leadership, saying, "He picked this party up off the floor and he led us to a record-breaking election victory. Our job now is to talk to the country, not to ourselves, about how we’re going to change the things that they care about." Reed’s comments underscore a prevailing view among the leadership that internal disputes should not distract from the party’s broader mission.
Meanwhile, Labour faces a series of daunting challenges. MPs are increasingly anxious about upcoming local and national elections in Wales, Scotland, and England in 2026, as well as the growing popularity of Reform UK in opinion polls. Some ministers have acknowledged that the elections will be tough and have not ruled out the possibility of a leadership challenge before then, though most see it as unlikely.
The party has also been rocked by a string of high-profile resignations. Sir Keir Starmer has weathered the departures of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and former US ambassador Lord Mandelson. Most recently, Steph Driver, the Prime Minister’s director of communications, resigned after nearly five years in the role, becoming the third person in six months to leave the post. Starmer described Driver as "a loyal and valued member" of his team.
As the Labour Party grapples with internal dissent, leadership speculation, and the looming threat of electoral setbacks, the question of Andy Burnham’s future remains unresolved. For now, the prevailing mood among Labour MPs is one of caution—if not outright resistance—toward any attempt to unseat Starmer. Yet, with the political landscape shifting and the party’s fortunes uncertain, Burnham’s name is likely to remain part of the conversation, whether he likes it or not.
