Murray McDonald

@williamnhutton It was won 22 months ago and had over 3 years under labour hands left. It should never have been up for grabs - never! Shame on Simons and Burnham

This Burnham campaign video deserves a retweet (and many more). Take a look at the vast (shady) money and professional media operation behind Reform. It’s going to be an existential battle.Wherever you stand on the Labour leadership, this seat must be won.

@JonathanPieNews @Makerfield_RFK Thought it was nigh on impossible to get suspended these days!

How in Satan's ballbag do you get your account permanently suspended from here these days? Reform's candicate for Makerfield, Robert Kenyon, is not off to a great start... @Makerfield_RFK

@DPJHodges Better than reporting what you've said to yourself in the mirror - as 'you've been told'

"Mr Burnham, I'm from Bloomberg. You've been the Labour candidate in the Makerfield by-election for 4 hours. Please set out your first budget if you become Prime Minister". "Er...no. Don't be daft". "Thank you Mr Burnham. Exclusive: "Burnham opens door to new tax rises!!!!!".

@lisanandy @AndyBurnhamGM The lot of you should be being investigated for this sorry mess - these are public offices you are playing with at a cost to the taxpayer - for personal gain. @gmpolice @metpoliceuk

Delighted @AndyBurnhamGM has been selected for Makerfield. He’s one of us and coming back to fight for the borough he calls home.

@AndyBurnhamGM A totally unnecessary selection. They had a labour MP. And at a cost to every tax payer This whole situation stinks and surely should be under investigation by @gmpolice and @metpoliceuk - these are public offices you are playing with for personal gain.

I am proud and humbled to have been selected as Labour’s candidate for Makerfield. These proud working-class communities represent the very best values of our country and they deserve so much better. It would be my honour to work for them every day, if elected as their MP, to achieve that. Many people here feel Westminster isn’t working for them and they are right. I am standing to change that and get the voice of these communities heard loud and clear. I am glad that this by-election has finally put the places that make up the Makerfield constituency into the national spotlight. They have been neglected by national politics for too long. It is a good thing that all political parties are now on the hook to tell the voters here what they are going to do for them. More than anything, people need life to be more affordable again. As Mayor, I have brought in changes which are helping, such as the £2 fare cap, free bus travel for our 16-18 year-olds and removing the 9.30am restriction from older and disabled people’s bus passes. But there is only so much I can do from Greater Manchester. If elected, I will have a relentless focus on reducing people’s everyday costs and bills and well as securing the investment these communities need. I have been an elected representative in Greater Manchester for 25 years. Throughout that time, I have fought for the people of the North West of England on so many fronts. I am now ready to bring the whole weight of that experience to fighting for the communities of the Makerfield constituency and would be privileged to be given that opportunity.

@robfox6565 @BenObeseJecty Can't see how it isn't - have been asking the same question and for Josh may even be misconduct in public office handing over his publicly elected seat. @metpoliceuk @gmpolice are you looking into this?

@BenObeseJecty If this the case, then pretty sure it would consitute “active bribery” under the 2010 Bribery Act. A criminal offence.

Surprise, surprise. Josh Simons to get a plum job advising Andy Burnham in No.10. There was always a question of what he’d been promised in order to make stepping down worth his while. The arrogance is breathtaking. Different leader, same chumocracy.

@BenedictSpence It's funny how anti-rejoin discussion the staunch brexshiteers are. It's like they know fine well they'd lose the vote, as nothing of the promised nirvana has come true.

I don’t know a single person who voted for Brexit who thinks it was a mistake.

@ToryFibs What it needs more than ever is a media that doesn’t target and vilify the PM

It was John Prescott who described Andy Burnham best. He said Andy had “the human touch”. He is genuinely relaxed and at his happiest when he is the company of ordinary people. Politics needs the human touch back more than ever.

@Peston FFS - give it a rest man - at least @DPJHodges has had the decency to duck for cover today after all his BS. Maybe take a leaf out of his book and try and save your dignity with some real actual factual stories. Farage £5m - the cost of replacing reform councillors

Would Starmer really fight Burnham for the leadership, as he insists? open.substack.com/pub/peston/p/w…

@benrileysmith Burnham was in government for 9 of the 40 years he is complaining about. Meanwhile Keir's had less than two to fix it all... and has to actually be able to fund whatever he says.

We are beginning to get a sense now of Andy Burnham’s pitch not just for the Makerfield by-election but for running the country. We have today’s speech and two interviews over the weekend (ITV and Mirror) to go off. There seems to be three big themes 1/ Britain has been on the wrong path since the 1980s. This is an explicit rejection not just of Thatcherism but New Labour for continuing some of its tenets. 2/ The centre is failing. Burnham is taking repeated digs at Whitehall / Westminster in these early interventions. Trying to run as an outsider. ‘A vote for me will be a vote to change Labour’. 3/ The unity candidate. “For Us” is his by-election slogan. Says he doesn’t want to endlessly take digs at Reform or others. Pitch: I can win Reform + Green votes There is also a policy picture emerging, though it’s being painted in very broad brush strokes right now. Nationalisation: Burnham is decrying privatisation as part of this ‘slide from the 80s’ theme. Seems to want energy and water (as well as rail, already happening) in some form of public ownership, though unclear what. Council housing: Burnham told the Mirror he wants council house-building at post-war levels. Huge change if so. In the 1950s 147k new council homes built a year. In the last decade just 1.4k a year. Rental: Burnham has mentioned soaring rents (and how it’s pushing up public spending through the benefits system). Does he want intervention here? Some form of capping? Unclear right now Deindustrialisation: Burnham is decrying the decline of industry across the North. The broad message seems to be a reversal needed. Few specifics but most moves here involve big £££ investment Brexit: Burnham has tried to close down this flank. Says now is not the time to rejoin the EU (even though in autumn he backed that end, eventually). Is calling for ‘relentless domestic focus’ instead. Fiscal rules: Burnham has tried to cauterise his remark about not being ‘in hock’ to the bond markets. Insisting he believes in need for fiscal rules. And that you can’t ignore the bond markets. It’s early days and big picture right now, but there is already a gaping hole in the middle: ‘Where’s the money coming from?’ Current pitch appears to be water and energy nationalisation… possible intervention in rental market… investment to reindustrialise… vast increase in council house building… but the fiscal rules stay so no borrowing spree… so higher taxes??… Expect plenty more scrutiny here.

@AvaSantina surely you have some documented proof if that is the case - an email, text?

The story was checked with Dawn, her office and other sources across party.

@BethRigby So can we stop with the speculation now - not that it should ever existed - this is a story and outcome that has been entirely driven by the media.

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

@MrHarryCole journalists and more specifically @DPJHodges probably

Who is this for?

@Peston How about some facts - all this speculation is embarrassing you all as journalists @DPJHodges has done a disappearing act for his BS reporting. Maybe you should take a break too...

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

@GeorgeAACX hmm, 'let's talk personal ambition'? this would be the very definition of PERSONAL ambition - getting a sitting MP to step aside, triggering a costly and risky by-election for you to try and gain a seat as part of an egotistical grab for power.

Burnham lived in the area for 25 years and has only ever contested one other seat. Clacton was Farage's 8th attempt at becoming an MP. You parachuted Matt Goodwin into G&D, even after he criticised an area which he has no history. But sure, let's talk personal ambition.

@BenInRushcliffe Nope - the media will steamroller whoever is Labour leader. Starmer has proven he can take the crap, I don't think given his self serving behaviour and ego Burnham will cope with the abuse and certainly will not fare any better.

Comment I read today; I don't think he'll (Andy) will be different in practice, but I also think a more charismatic man than Starmer could be politically identical to Keir but have twice as much support, purely that's because how fickle the voting public is. Agree?

@TonyFelonius @SandyofSuffolk surely that would constitute a bribe? there are laws against such things - particularly for those in public office...

He'll get a life peerage and his seat in the Lords will bring him attendance allowance forever plus lucrative places on government committees, boards and NGOs. He'll never have to face an election ever again. This is the politician's dream and the same reason they loved the EU so much.

Man with three young children just chucks in a good job earning £98,599 a year, plus expenses, plus subsidized meals and drinks, because........?? Explanation required please.

@JonathanPieNews And 'where's Dan' after his piss poor 'sources' made him break the BS story Starmer was steeping aside. Mail Editor currently explaining to him that talking to himself in the mirror doesn't count as being able to report 'I've been told...'

Once again, The Daily Mail wastes everybody's time with piss poor click bait articles of no value to anyone whatsoever. Still, they achieved what they set out to.

@joshsimonsmp Do you even read the comments - clearly not, otherwise you'd stop posting. You are a disgrace to the labour party and your constituents.

Never thought I’d end up as Crown Steward of Burnham 👀

@tomchapple1 @BenInRushcliffe May be happening all quiet from Dan

@BenInRushcliffe If I were the editor of DM I would be asking for a timetable for Hodges stand down. I would probably give it to him. Oh but truth and good reporting Iis not what Mail about.. he is only following orders

This was bullshit. #DontBelieveDan