The boss of Britain’s biggest union has warned Labour to ensure a democratic process in the Gorton byelection, amid signs a “Stop Andy Burnham” campaign is under way to prevent him posing a threat to Keir Starmer.
Andrea Egan, the general secretary of Unison, who started in the job on Thursday, appeared to stand against the prospect of a stitch-up in the contest as she warned against “control-freakery” in the party.
The byelection was triggered by the resignation of the independent MP Andrew Gwynne on medical grounds, paving the way for a possible return for Burnham, who is currently mayor of Greater Manchester.
The Guardian reported on Thursday that allies of Starmer were trying to prevent Burnham’s return amid fears he could challenge for the leadership.
Multiple members of the party’s ruling national executive committee (NEC) predicted it would be impossible for Burnham to make it through the selection process given the number of Starmer loyalists on the body.
But Egan was one of several figures to warn on Friday against any moves to rig the contest. “I’m sure all trade unionists expect a democratic process for Gorton & Denton in which local party members decide who they want to represent them. We’ve seen enough control-freakery in the Labour party and it has done our movement nothing but harm,” she posted on X.
A leading MP, Jo White, who runs the Labour red wall group of MPs, said: “Let the north decide who their Labour candidate should be for the Gorton and Denton byelection. A London stitch-up will be a disaster for Labour.”
Stephen Kinnock, a health minister, insisted the process would be the same as any other candidate selection, despite rumours it could be limited to an all-women or all-BAME shortlist. He told BBC Breakfast: “It will be like any other selection process and those rules and procedures will be set in due course.”
Kinnock said Burnham was “doing a great job in the role that he currently has” and was an “incredibly talented and effective leader as the mayor of Greater Manchester”.
Allies of Burnham suggested there would be significant disquiet among MPs, unions and party members should the leadership try to block him from returning to parliament, where he served as the MP for Leigh from 2001 to 2017.
Burnham has not confirmed he intends to run for the seat but he made no secret of his ambitions when he said in the run-up to the party’s conference last year that many MPs had urged him to run for Labour leader, prompting outrage within No 10 and among cabinet ministers.
He has long been believed to be seeking a return to parliament to stand for the leadership if there was a challenge to Starmer, but was thought to have limited options for a byelection in the north-west of England.
The byelection could be a huge battle between Labour, the Greens and Reform UK.
It could be even more fiercely fought if Zack Polanski, the leader of the Green party, decides to stand. He grew up in another part of Manchester and would benefit from leading his party from within parliament rather than outside it.
Labour won the seat under Gwynne, who was later suspended from the party, with a 13,413 majority in 2024. Reform and the Greens were in second and third place and almost neck and neck, with 14% and 13% of the vote respectively.
