The decision to bar the mayor of Greater Manchester and former MP Andy Burnham from standing for the now vacant parliamentary seat of Gorton and Denton raises a host of questions, both about Sir Keir Starmer himself, as party leader and prime minister, and about the governance of the Labour Party.
In his 18 months as prime minister, Sir Keir has often appeared a weak and indecisive leader, with policy U-turns and prevarications under pressure more in evidence than any determined pursuit of the objectives set out in the manifesto on which he led Labour to its landslide election victory.
