Andy Burnham blocked from re-entering parliament.

Fallingstar

It is not in Starmer’s interest because Burnham is a popular grass roots Labour politician whose values strike a chord with those now feeling disaffected by the Labour party.

This, absolutely.
Citing the cost of a mayoral election is IMO a pretty feeble excuse.
TBH it’ll serve them right if Reform win the by-election. Not that I’ll be happy about it, needless to say. 🙁

LemonJam

Casdon "He is still up there in the Best Prime Minister for the UK polls carried out by YouGov every month, so yes, there are many people who still think so, I think it’s his performance on the international relations side that is protecting his popularity".

Sundowngirl- "I’m a little confused Casdon. The YouGov poll that I saw for end of December showed only 15% thought Keir Starmer was doing well as PM and 73% said he was doing badly.
Have you seen a different poll?"

LizzieDrip Sun 25-Jan-26 23:53:42 to sundowngirl

"www.ipsos.com/en-uk/britons-narrowly-split-between-labour-led-keir-starmer-and-reform-uk-led-nigel-farage-poll-reveals".

Starmer is by no measure a "Best prime Minster". The poll link solely shows there was a very narrow split, a particular moment in time, as to which of the current party leaders the public thought was best to be PM. It did not measure whether Starmer is a good PM. Many would agree that many are disillusioned with the calibre of some of the current party leaders.

The only important measure is who the public would like to see as Labour leader at the next election to secure a second term.

I don’t agree LemonJam. This is a monthly poll, not a one off. It measures which of the party leaders the electorate believe offers the most as PM. That will influence their voting in the next general election. It is one of a range of factors, obviously, but to dismiss it is incorrect.

MayBee70

I really don’t understand why, when the world is in such an unstable state and it’s almost impossible to believe what’s happening in America that there are people in the Labour Party that are desperate for a leadership election. It’s no wonder that Labour are very rarely in power.

I'm inclined to agree.

We need some stability at the present time. Starmer seems to have got the measure of Trump and seems able to deal with him diplomatically but firmly (imo).

I found his views on German federalism interesting. But as a man of left I wonder why he hasn't had the same look at the municipality system in the Nordic counties. Both give us models of how we could equalise our Combined Authorities. It seems he has only looked at one model - the one that would give the Mayor greater power.

As I understand it - and that understanding isn't great - although the Nordic systems differ they do provide greater municipal equalisation; citizens have access tocomparable public services

• Regardless of where they live
• Even if local tax bases differ greatly

I have a feeling AB is more interested in power than basic equality.

I asked Chatgtp about Burnham, regional power and PR. It gave me a selection of recent articles from reputable and easily verifiable sources.

Devolution & regional power

He continues to campaign for deeper devolution beyond the current metro-mayoral model, arguing that local areas must have real power rather than being subject to Whitehall control.

His framing of “rewiring Westminster” centres on empowering regions and redistributing power away from London-centric structures.

Proportional Representation

Although not always front-and-centre in mainstream news articles from the last few months, Burnham has repeatedly argued for a system that better reflects voters’ choices and regional voices — critiquing first-past-the-post and connecting that critique to the broader need for democratic reform

Past comments (e.g., at policy gatherings) have explicitly connected proportional representation with empowering regions and fixing democratic deficits.

Labour Link was one source cited. I've linked to this article as being representative of Chatgtp's conclusions and because it doesn't have a paywall

labourlist.org/2026/01/burnhams-britain-king-of-the-north-rewire-westminster/

I like Andy Burnham and think he would be a good PM, just not right now when Kier Starmer is at least keeping the orange one over the pond in his sights.

However, the Board of Peace business has raised a small alarm bell in my head. Tony Blair was a popular candidate for PM, and led the party with charisma. He has subsequently shown a deplorable lack of morality. I would just hate it if Andy Burnham also has feet of clay when his day in the sun comes.

I really like this quote from Chris Mason, political editor, on the BBC website.

‘In an exercise of brute power, which is simultaneously an illustration of how they perceive their own weakness, Number Ten has scuppered…’ etc.
👏👏 Spot on!

All I can say, big, stupid mistake, in my opinion

Hardly democratic

Country, not Party, Party not Person!!

Put your fears aside Mr Starmer, AB could have and will be a great asset as an MP

It is normal practice for a decision to be made as to who can or cannot stand as an MP. Where someone is already in a public office that would require vast cost to elect someone else it makes sense to opt for a different candidate.

I do not see Burnham as a threat to Starmer - he does not have the statesman qualities currently needed in this precarious international situation.

I do not see Burnham as a threat to Starmer - he does not have the statesman qualities currently needed in this precarious international situation.

How can you possibly know that?

Did we know that Starmer had such qualities before he became PM?

I think we did. Or I did ...

As a LP party member I didn't vote for Starmer as leader. I did vote for Andy Burnham but he lost to Ed Milliband,

I am a bit of a fence sitter with Starmer but this whole business disappoints me.

In some ways I wish Burnham hadn't put himself forward, but I fear Labour has shot itself in the foot yet again with not allowing the process to pan out.

MaizieD

^I do not see Burnham as a threat to Starmer - he does not have the statesman qualities currently needed in this precarious international situation.^

How can you possibly know that?

Did we know that Starmer had such qualities before he became PM?

I believe that Starmer had, for a long time prior to the election, been working at repairing our relationship with Europe so imo he was someone that would be able to represent us well on the world stage. And his experience dealing with issues in Ireland helped. He seems to have a good relationship with most world leaders and, as has been pointed out, even by people that don’t particularly like him, he (and the King, who he also works well with) is dealing with Trump well. And at this moment in time that overrides everything else. Who would have ever foreseen a time when America would have been such a threat to our country. If ever we needed a stable government it is now. Maybe, as with Brexit, there are other forces trying to destabilise our government and the controversy over Burnham is just playing into their hands.

It's Labour Party rules which Burnham must have signed up to. If the Party now engage in a 'civil war' they are being foolish.

I swore never again to vote Labour after cutting the fuel allowance for pensioners just after taking office. They live on very little money as it is after the government has robbed the pot so many times. This just confirms that he is in politics for himself. If Andy Burnham is a threat then he should seriously be considered to take leadership. ALL MP's should put the country first!

I have been saying ever since Starmer started braking his promises (as soon as he got in) that Andy Burnham would make a better prime minister.
It’s obvious why he has put a stop to him becoming an MP as he knows he would beat him in any vote, but in doing this he has paved the way for Reform, as I don’t think many people would vote again for Starmer or the Tories.
In my opinion Ed Davey is also missing a trick with the two main parties being so unpopular he doesn’t appear to be pushing his party, his silly stunts aren’t going to win votes

Starmer brought in the new rule about Police and Crime Commissioners and Mayors needing permission to run as Parliamentary Candidates, so he could sabotage any move to stand by Burnham. He also stacked the NEC with his cronies to be ready too.
Starmer now has yet another nickname. His full title is now - Two Tier, Free Gear, Never Here, Flip Flop, Cowardly Keir!

IMO Labour needs a new leader, a real leader. Starmer and allies have just shown how afraid they are of any leadership challenge because they know how badly Starmer is doing. They are putting a stop to many local elections in May and are now preventing a popular and very effective politician from joining parliament because they fear a leadership challenge. Another sign of weakness or another opportunity for a U-turn!

He hasn't been "blocked from re-entering Parliament".

He just won't be a Labour candidate in the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election.

In any by-election, MOST of the candidates LOSE. Nothing to prevent them seeking a seat in another constituency, another time, even for another party.

In the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election, Labour might very well lose the seat. .. with or without Burnham.

Absolutely agree......
Starmer brilliant Barrister but not a good Prime Minister. Think he will lose next election and I feel return to previous job as Human Rights may be he has learnt things or two.rAfter a lifetime of being member of Labour party have left in disgust !

Lesley60

I have been saying ever since Starmer started braking his promises (as soon as he got in) that Andy Burnham would make a better prime minister.
It’s obvious why he has put a stop to him becoming an MP as he knows he would beat him in any vote, but in doing this he has paved the way for Reform, as I don’t think many people would vote again for Starmer or the Tories.
In my opinion Ed Davey is also missing a trick with the two main parties being so unpopular he doesn’t appear to be pushing his party, his silly stunts aren’t going to win votes

His ‘silly stunts’ enabled the LibDems to get more seats in parliament than they’ve had for a long time…people mocked him for it at the time but it worked.

Lallylou

Absolutely agree......
Starmer brilliant Barrister but not a good Prime Minister. Think he will lose next election and I feel return to previous job as Human Rights may be he has learnt things or two.rAfter a lifetime of being member of Labour party have left in disgust !

Can I ask which party you have moved to?

Allira

MayBee70

I really don’t understand why, when the world is in such an unstable state and it’s almost impossible to believe what’s happening in America that there are people in the Labour Party that are desperate for a leadership election. It’s no wonder that Labour are very rarely in power.

I'm inclined to agree.

We need some stability at the present time. Starmer seems to have got the measure of Trump and seems able to deal with him diplomatically but firmly (imo).

IMO this is simply not realistic, how can anybody possibly "get the measure of" somebody who is as unstable and unpredictable as the Orange One?
And the idea of Starmer dealing with anybody "firmly" is just beyond my belief.
I appreciate that not everybody shares my view, but I see him as a weak leader who will not deal firmly with anything or anyone. If left as PM he will meander on through his term, possibly improving things slightly for those who push him hardest, but otherwise unlikely to even manage to maintain the current poor situation for most of us in the country.

MayBee70

Lesley60

I have been saying ever since Starmer started braking his promises (as soon as he got in) that Andy Burnham would make a better prime minister.
It’s obvious why he has put a stop to him becoming an MP as he knows he would beat him in any vote, but in doing this he has paved the way for Reform, as I don’t think many people would vote again for Starmer or the Tories.
In my opinion Ed Davey is also missing a trick with the two main parties being so unpopular he doesn’t appear to be pushing his party, his silly stunts aren’t going to win votes

His ‘silly stunts’ enabled the LibDems to get more seats in parliament than they’ve had for a long time…people mocked him for it at the time but it worked.

They got him and his party noticed.

Unfortunately he is noticeably absent from the media and rarely hear anything of him or the other Lib Dem MP’s.