Pete Devonish

@PeterStefanovi2 But he could have done that when he was a shadow minister. Why didn’t he?!

Andy Burnham says anybody who votes for him will be voting to "change Labour, because Labour needs to change"

@SamCoatesSky @ShippersUnbound They need to wake up. Burnham can’t deliver nationally! He’s got form.

NEW - YouGov Labour members polling If there is a leadership contest, your first preference: Burnham 47% Starmer 31% Rayner 8% Streeting 4% Miliband 3% Cooper 3% Mahmood 1% Carns 0% Head to heads: Burnham 59% v Starmer 37% Burnham 80% v Streeting 10% Miliband 58% v Streeting 28% Rayner 70% v Streeting 19% On Keir Starmer, should he: Take party into next election 28% Remain as leader until closer to GE 33% Step down no / in months 33% YouGov polled 706 Labour members, May 14-18

@ChillaxBcn Welcome to the club. There are a lot of us but you wouldn’t know that from the media pile-on

I'm actually starting to think Burnham might not even win the by-election and Starmer could survive this fiasco.

@Peston Robert. This is utter speculation and rumour. I thought you were better than this. Give your head a wobble and get a bit of perspective. He is the best PM for years and things are beginning to look really good for the UK. #starmermuststay

Keir Starmer does not want the Makerfield by-election to be an explicit referendum on whether he should remain prime minister. Which is why he has - just now - ruled out setting a timetable for his own resignation even if Andy Burnham wins that by-election. Truthfully this is Olympic level straw-clutching. It will be just such a referendum, whatever the PM says. As a tactic it reminds me of David Cameron vowing he would not quit if he were to lose the Brexit referendum. What transpired was that Cameron resigned within hours of being trounced by Johnson, Farage and Cummings. But some kind of amour propre is preserved by Starmer’s refusal to pledge to surrender the throne after one more battle. Starmer also says that if someone - say Burnham - were to get the requisite 81 nominations and were to trigger a leadership contest, he would join the fray and fight. If he is to be taken at his word, this isn’t just any old hard ball, but is death-match stuff, with the survival of the Labour Party in the frame. All the important trade union leaders want Starmer to quit, as do a significant number of Labour MPs (I am not going to say “most” because reliable data is not available, though the party is conspicuously split). Starmer is saying “bring it on, if you’re hard enough.” And we have to assume that the Evertonian Burnham believes he is. Starmer’s weekend of ruminating about his future at Chequers has not introduced much in the way of self doubt, for all that he is surrounded by those who doubt him. That is a genius of sorts. Hats off. Maybe as and when Burnham becomes an MP again, he will have the revelation that Starmer and Starmerism are a winning combination, despite the contrary evidence of multiple elections. And possibly Streeting, and Rayner, and Miliband will suddenly surrender any ambition to lead and change the course adopted by their party. Anything is possible in these volatile times. Though I wouldn’t attach a high probability to an outcome that increases Starmer’s job security. What is highly probable is that if Burnham wins and Starmer says he ain’t budging, we may witness the kind of mayhem that could destroy Labour. I am not exaggerating. Their party is so ideologically riven and so weakened by factionalism that an emotional leadership contest that barks like civil war may put paid to any rolling back of the stone and any escape from the grave.

@BethRigby @GeorgeFoulkes Quite right - get off his back!

PM not backing down. Says he wants to fight the next general election

@PhilMyers53 👏👏 💯

I have to be honest, I DO NOT appreciate Burnham’s intervention. “ Politics has been getting it wrong for 40 years”? HE was a part of it! He is not Labour’s messiah This, his 3rd attempt No, not for me! #TenYearKeir

@SkyNews @alexrogerssky Out of touch them or he doesn’t want to acknowledge the successes that are unfolding. Ridiculous.

'I think the period of Starmer's leadership is obviously over.' @alexrogerssky spoke with Unite the Union’s director, Simon Dubbins, about the organisation’s stance toward the Labour Party amid ongoing leadership tensions. Live updates: trib.al/khiPI1w

@Steven_Swinford Evidence he’s likely to succeed SKS? The guy who lost leadership election twice and to Corbyn and has no national track record. Try to be balanced in your opinions and claims.

Keir Starmer says he will give Andy Burnham his ‘one hundred per cent’ support in the Makerfield by election during a visit to Labour HQ He says he wants ‘everyone in our movement’ to get behind Burnham - despite the fact that if he wins he is likely to succeed him as PM “It’s not been easy circumstances in the last 10 days. But you have just got on with the job that we asked you to do. “The election results tell us that people are frustrated, they don’t feel that their lives have changed quickly enough. “We need to build up the urgency of what we do. We need a bit more hope in there. And we need to remember at all times what we are here to do. We were elected to government to serve the people of this country. “And I remind myself every day that in July 2024 millions of people voted for us to come into government, to get on with the job, to govern, and to bring about the change that they want. “So I am focused on the job that I was asked to do, which is to serve my country and to carry out my duties as Prime Minister of this country. Delivering for the very many people who voted us into office, who are saying, ‘just get on with it, get on with the job, get on with the change that I need to see in my life’. And that is what I am going to be doing. “We now have an important by-election coming up. It is Labour versus Reform. We will know very shortly who the candidate is. Whoever they are I am going to support them one hundred per cent and I want every member, everyone in our movement to support them. A Labour candidate to beat Reform. That is the fight that we are in.”

@KevinASchofield It of a simplistic comparison 🥴

David Lammy tells the BBC that Keir Starmer “fights on”. That didn’t work out well for Margaret Thatcher

@ToniaAntoniazzi Did you look at his speech today?! Are you really saying anyone else can do any better?! Get real and give your head a wobble. #starmermuststay

Everyone in the Labour movement needs to be honest with themselves right now and accept that with Starmer, it is just not working.

@dave43law @HuffPostUKPol Evidence a link?

Exclusive: Former Labour Members Are Returning To The Party To Back Andy Burnham huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/exclusiv… via @HuffPostUKPol

@lukejcr Grow up and look at the indicators the PM shared today. Burnham hasn’t got a clue and never did. Have a look at his record pre-Mayor. And a Mayor and a PM are completely different. Nieve dies t begin to describe you and your inexperienced MP mates- total shambles. Get a grip.

The Makerfield by-election is a choice between delivery and division. If Andy proves Labour can win, the populist right’s whole business model crumbles. Grievance politics doesn’t help people get on in life. But capping buses at £2 in Greater Manchester? Very popular! 🌹

@Joe__Monty You seen how well the economy is doing? Have some patience 🙄.

You may not like Burnham. But if he doesnt win and we don't have a leadership contest this year, the party is finished for 2029.

@NicholasTyrone The two are not connected. He’s not stepping down because he’s better than all of them.

Starmer not setting out a timetable for stepping down is interesting. He is betting on Burnham losing the by-election, it seems.

@Peston What - he actually said that, ‘… unless and until AB wins the by-election…’Really? Or is that pure speculation? If so, poor journalism.

Keir Starmer has decided not to announce a departure timetable unless and until Andy Burnham wins the Makerfield by-election. I will explore what this means for the government and Labour Party later today

@giselle97 He’s coming out if this stronger - the only adult in the room.

You bastards will never be forgiven by this Labour voter! Sir Keir Starmer is superior to all of you. If he goes, I go. You've destroyed Labour! Go to Hell. How Rayner, Streeting and Burnham weakened PM in 12 hours of political drama bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

@lukejcr Mate, it’s already a Labour seat 😂

I popped over the Pennines yesterday afternoon to take the fight to Reform in Makerfield. What did I hear from people who voted for them last week? Find out below.🌹

@MatthewTorbitt @LBC @AndyBurnhamGM Grow up

Spoke to Vanessa Feltz on @LBC earlier about what I’m hoping to see moving forward in the Labour Party. Didn’t expect to get quite as emotional as I did talking about @AndyBurnhamGM but we are crying out for an authentic voice that makes you feel like you matter

@LizWebsterSBF @AndyBurnhamGM In Manchester and the North I understand, on both counts, but I’m not convinced that translates on a national platform.

@Pete_Dev @AndyBurnhamGM He’s gone on to huge success. He’s hugely popular.

Progress! @AndyBurnhamGM cleared first hurdle. The Great British Now let’s make sure he wins Makerfield, wins leadership election to restore hope by scrapping FPTP, Brexit red lines and fiscal trap.

@DianaJA76 @ElizabethBangs FFS 🤦‍♂️

We’re in this wild situation where I’m watching a Labour MP being asked “isn’t it all turning round now, economy growing, NHS waiting lists down, shouldn’t you just be patient?” And the MP is arguing AGAINST his own party’s GOOD record to justify losing confidence. 🤦🏻‍♀️😆