Andy Burnham Faces Perilous Race To Win Makerfield Byelection Against Reform UK

Andy Burnham faces a perilous race to win the Makerfield seat, with the Greater Manchester mayor expected to be confirmed as Labour’s candidate for the north-west constituency later this week.

The Guardian says polling suggests Burnham is only marginally ahead of Reform UK, after Nigel Farage’s party won more than 50% of the vote at the local elections, and it frames the byelection as a test that could decide the long-term future of Labour and the country.

BBC

The BBC reports Burnham has promised not to "re-run" Brexit arguments, saying he is not proposing the UK considers rejoining the European Union.

Burnham’s path to Westminster is tied to the Makerfield vote, which the Guardian says is likely to be held on or around 18 June, while the BBC adds that he needs to be chosen by the local party after Josh Simons stood down to make way for him.

The Guardian describes an escalating Labour row over whether the UK should seek to rejoin the EU, with Reform likely to focus heavily on immigration and Brexit as it looks to exploit the dispute.

It says Streeting’s pro-EU stance was quickly dismissed as "odd" by the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, and it notes that Labour’s position will be tested on Wednesday when the Liberal Democrats lay an amendment to the king’s speech calling for the government to begin immediate talks over entering a customs union.

BBC

The Telegraph reports Sir Keir Starmer raised the prospect of Britain rejoining the EU, with a Downing Street spokesman refusing to rule out rejoining the bloc in the future and saying, "I’m not going to make a commitment about the next election."

In response, the Telegraph says Burnham insisted he “respects” Brexit and told the Great North summit in Leeds on Monday that now was not the time to “re-run” old arguments.

The Guardian says the outcome of the byelection is likely to determine not only the immediate political future of Keir Starmer, whom Burnham has pledged to challenge if elected, but also the viability of the Labour party as a whole.

It adds that one ally warned, “It’s impossible to underscore how perilous this is,” and said the race could decide whether Starmer is left in office but badly wounded if Burnham loses.

The BBC reports Sir Keir has insisted he will not set out a timetable to stand down as prime minister if Burnham returns to Westminster, and it quotes him saying, "I'm not going to do that."

The BBC also states the by-election is "a fight between Labour and Reform" and that Sir Keir said he would be backing 100% whoever the [Labour] candidate is, while the Guardian says the vote could give Burnham a clear mandate to challenge Starmer’s future.