Starmer: Burnham leadership challenge would “throw the country into chaos”

In the latest instalment of the poorly-written melodrama that is Starmer’s Labour, the PM has warned Andy Burnham that a leadership challenge would “throw the country into chaos”.

However, speaking on ITV’s This Morning, he also stated that:

If there is a challenge, I will fight. I’m not going to walk away from this.

We won a landslide victory just two years ago with a clear mandate to change the country, that’s a five-year mandate.

‘I always said that would take time’ says Starmer

Following devastating losses across England, Wales and Scotland in May’s elections, the Labour leader has faced renewed calls to step down.

Polster YouGov is currently reporting that 61% of respondents dislike Starmer, versus just 19% in favour. Likewise, as of 18 May, 71% of the public felt that the PM was doing a bad job.

However, Starmer seems undeterred, insisting that he intends to remain in his position for the long-haul:

What we did was offer change. I always said that would take time.

Do I understand that people are frustrated and say ‘I haven’t seen enough change yet?’ Yes, of course I do.

We need to complete on the work that we are doing, but… if you’ve waited best part of 20 years for your living standards to improve, you want that to happen more quickly. I completely understand that.

All eyes on Makerfield

Andy Burnham is currently the mayor of Greater Manchester. However, his best route toward a potential bid for the leadership of Labour is to become a member of Parliament. As such, a great deal hinges on the upcoming by-election in Makerfield, Greater Manchester.

The constituency’s former minister, Josh Simons, quit his seat in order to clear a shot for Burnham. The leadership hopeful’s most prominent rival for the seat is Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon, who has faced repeated controversy over his friendships with fascists and deeply bigoted outbursts.

In order to mount a leadership challenge, Burnham would then need the backing of 81 other Labour MPs. Rivals who have already signalled their intent to oppose him include ex-health minister Wes Streeting and former armed forces minister Al Carns, both of whom have already quit their positions.

As reported in Murdoch rag the Sun back in May, a senior Labour source stated that Burnham was considering a snap election, should he be victorious:

Andy considering an early general election. They are wargaming it.

But Labour MPs would absolutely hate it. They are worried about losing their seats.

If Andy becomes PM I expect he will have to promise the PLP (Parliamentary Labour Party) that he will not call a snap election.

They will want him to sign the pledge in blood.

However, the Manchester mayor’s team have since signaled that the rumours are false.

While some in his campaign were initially in favour of holding off until after Labour’s September conference, the resignations last week of John Healey as defence secretary and Al Carns as armed forces minister over military funding persuaded them to act more quickly, The Times reported.

‘Change the story’, Burnham

Regarding the by-election, which will take place on Thursday 18 June, Burnham sounded hopeful:

I kind of feel as we go into the final stretch that the voters of this constituency could be about to write a new script for British politics, and how good is that?

Change the story.

It’s becoming more and more divided, isn’t it?

And we can see what’s happening.

We don’t want to end up like the United States of America, where people don’t talk to each other in the street if they vote different ways.

Just three days ahead of the crucial date, the Labour candidate is currently leading across most polls. However, and as we at the Canary keep pointing out, for all Burnham’s talk of ‘change’, he still seems extremely woolly on little details like what exactly he’ll change, how he’ll change it, and when he expects to be done changing it.

Now where have we heard that one before?

Featured image via the Canary