{"id":659853,"date":"2026-06-26T19:12:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T19:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/659853\/"},"modified":"2026-06-26T19:12:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T19:12:12","slug":"andy-burnhams-long-coup-the-chaotic-year-long-project-to-return-him-to-westminster-andy-burnham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/659853\/","title":{"rendered":"Andy Burnham\u2019s long coup: the chaotic year-long project to return him to Westminster | Andy Burnham"},"content":{"rendered":"

The third coming of Andy Burnham began in earnest on the dancefloor of the Ministry of Sound. It was the annual conference of the centre-left pressure group Compass on an unusually hot spring weekend in May 2025. Keir Starmer<\/a>, a year into his premiership, was deep in the trenches of the welfare battle. The event\u2019s keynote speakers were Burnham and Louise Haigh.<\/p>\n

Under the hot pink lights, the mayor of Greater Manchester joked that he was doing the \u201crally the troops\u201d slot, inappropriate for a pessimistic Evertonian. But he said there was one reason to still be cheerful. The threat of Reform, he said, \u201cmeans the left will now have to make changes that we should have made many years ago \u2026 something new is going to break through.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reception was as rapturous as a rave. But no one knew what it meant in practice.<\/p>\n

It was the other name down to speak that night that was the crucial missing element. \u201cWe\u2019ve had New Labour<\/a> and Blue Labour. Now it\u2019s time for Lou Labour,\u201d said the Compass director, Neal Lawson, a close friend of Burnham\u2019s, as he introduced Haigh.<\/p>\n

It was Haigh\u2019s first critical intervention since her sacking as transport secretary. \u201cToo often over the last few months, we have chosen caution and consensus over the boldness voters expect and made clear they want,\u201d she said to whoops and cheers.<\/p>\n

Andy Burnham speaking at a Compass event in May 2025. Photograph: Compass\/YouTube<\/p>\n

Not many of Labour\u2019s higher echelons were in that sweaty room to see the beginning. At least one senior adviser said they had \u201cstayed away \u2013 because I knew that someone would look back and write about this one day\u201d.<\/p>\n

This is the story of the year-long, chaotic project to return Burnham from Manchester to Westminster, which culminated on Monday with his reception by hundreds of beaming MPs in Westminster Hall.<\/p>\n

Dissatisfied MPs<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery conversation I had with MPs from October to May was \u2018Angela Rayner has flaws, Wes Streeting has flaws, Ed Miliband has flaws. And of course, Andy is not in parliament,\u2019\u201d one senior adviser to Burnham said. \u201cSo then it becomes obvious that geography can only hold him back for so long.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Haigh, the welfare bill battle<\/a> just four weeks after that pivotal spring weekend brought a closer alliance with Anneliese Midgley, the Knowsley MP who is close to Burnham and who was instrumental to the welfare climbdown.<\/p>\n

Then came the summer dominated by Nigel Farage<\/a>, with no response visible from the prime minister or government. Labour MPs were starting to doubt Starmer could \u201cmeet the moment\u201d of the threat from the populist right.<\/p>\n

It was not just the soft left who formed that view. Inside the Labour Growth Group of centrist MPs, dissatisfaction was growing so fast that Josh Simons, once the golden boy of Starmerism, was beginning to talk to friends about how to replace him with Burnham.<\/p>\n

If Labour Together and Morgan McSweeney were the midwives of Starmerism, then there is no direct equivalent for Burnham. There were three separate operations.<\/p>\n

Neal Lawson, the Compass director. Photograph: Matt Crossick\/Alamy<\/p>\n

The first was the launch of Mainstream<\/a>, the Compass-founded campaign group that provided policy work and social media for Burnham to start to build a leadership campaign. Lawson, the Compass director who had hosted the Ministry of Sound event, had decided that the party needed a vehicle that would argue for a change in leadership, ostensibly to campaign against toxic factionalism. \u201cEveryone knew this was a front for Andy Burnham\u2019s leadership,\u201d one MP observed. \u201cThey didn\u2019t try to hide it much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lawson approached Burnham to publicly sign up to the group\u2019s aims, with little expectation that he would. But Burnham signed the group\u2019s opening statement.<\/p>\n

Among those who are now making the key decisions around Burnham, there are mixed views on how successful the project was \u2013 in part because some of the MPs who signed up were seen by others in the party as too far left, such as Clive Lewis and Nadia Whittome.<\/p>\n

And then came the second phase, initiated by Haigh, Midgeley and Ed Miliband to make Burnham the consensual will of MPs. And the final piece of the puzzle would be Simons, who many close to Burnham initially thought was double agent of No 10. \u201cI genuinely thought he was a spy. Well, it turns out he isn\u2019t,\u201d one friend of Burnham said.<\/p>\n

Rumours of return<\/p>\n

When the rumours began in earnest that Burnham was serious about seeking a return, inside No 10 it was greeted with \u201chere we go again.\u201d Starmer had long distrusted Burnham, seeing him as an opportunist who sought publicity every time his leadership was on the back foot.<\/p>\n

But September was the worst month yet of Starmer\u2019s premiership. Elon Musk had addressed Tommy Robinson\u2019s far-right Unite the Kingdom march. Angela Rayner was forced out over her tax affairs. A reshuffle infuriated hordes of now ex-junior ministers. And Peter Mandelson was sacked as US ambassador over the Epstein scandal.<\/p>\n

Keir Starmer at the Labour party conference in Liverpool in late September 2025. Photograph: Christopher Thomond\/The Guardian<\/p>\n

Earlier that month, the Guardian had revealed Burnham was becoming the receptacle for MPs who were starting to plot in earnest the removal of Starmer. Then, before the Labour conference, Burnham broke cover with a series of critical media interviews. \u201cAndy was only saying what we were all saying, but everything he says is magnified several times over,\u201d said Steve Rotheram, the mayor of Liverpool.<\/p>\n

The media hype went into overdrive \u2013 including those fateful words where he said<\/a>, in an interview with the New Statesman, \u201cwe\u2019ve got to get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets\u201d. They were market-moving comments and they dogged Burnham through the conference, where he made multiple appearances. Many MPs left the Liverpool conference believing that Burnham was ultimately not serious, or at least did not have a competent operation.<\/p>\n

No 10 was buoyant, though one minister, digesting the fallout, said: \u201cHe\u2019s said some dumb things and he\u2019s done some dumb stuff, but the fundamentals are unfortunately absolutely correct. It isn\u2019t working and we need a radical change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeking a seat<\/p>\n

There was still the question of a seat. Graham Stringer, the MP for Blackley and Middleton South, rebuffed early inquiries. More promising was Gorton and Denton, where the suspended MP, Andrew Gwynne, had applied on grounds of ill health for medical retirement. Then Gwynne suddenly changed his mind.<\/p>\n

It seemed, outwardly, like a huge blow. But in a Japanese cafe near Westminster, Burnham\u2019s closest backers were sanguine. \u201cThis is not the end of the Gorton option,\u201d one said. Another said: \u201cThere are others. Maybe half a dozen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because many of Burnham\u2019s allies still privately believed Gorton to be an option, several advisers began to suggest he should get a policy operation under way, which would define the organisation of a future government. Burnham himself was uneasy about doing so. The result was many different supporters working in silos. \u201cIt was lots of different players on the pitch, and they were all running around in their own little circles, because he didn\u2019t actually captain the team,\u201d one said.<\/p>\n

The lack of preparation meant that when the seat suddenly heaved back into view, the operation was not ready. The groundwork had not been done with Labour\u2019s national executive committee (NEC) or the trade unions to try to convince them to let Burnham return. Far fewer MPs than expected \u2013 about 60 \u2013 were prepared to sign a letter demanding he be allowed to contest the seat.<\/p>\n

The Gorton byelection was won by the Green candidate, Hannah Spencer, after Burnham was barred from standing for Labour. Photograph: Ryan Jenkinson\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cIt had been on the cards for some time, but the right opportunity hadn\u2019t presented itself. Then you thought: oh god, is the chance gone?\u201d Rotheram said.<\/p>\n

\u201cGorton and Denton was amateur hour,\u201d one of Burnham\u2019s team admitted. \u201cLucy Powell [the new deputy leader] was tearing her hair out because she was somehow expected to fix this.\u201d Trade union leaders in particularly were scathing that they had not been properly sounded out. Labour came third in the seat, behind the Greens and Reform.<\/p>\n

Seizing the initiative<\/p>\n

By March, it was clear that Labour\u2019s May election results were going to be catastrophic. MPs began to go, in small waves, to see Miliband, the energy secretary, suggesting he consider running for leader again. But Miliband emphatically told the groups that he would not \u2013 and that if there was a contest, they should instead put their efforts into making sure Burnham was in a position to contend for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a good enough answer to say \u2018oh shucks, well I guess we can\u2019t have this election-winning guy because he\u2019s not here\u2019,\u201d one of Burnham\u2019s backers said. \u201cBut there really were very few people apart from Lou and Anneliese and Ed who actually tried to change it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miliband and Kevin Lee, Burnham\u2019s chief of staff, considered presenting Starmer with a demand post-May to return Burnham to parliament. But MPs felt it was worthless. \u201cWhat is the point if you do not have anything to threaten?\u201d one MP said.<\/p>\n

Others who went to see Miliband at the time believed he was close to preparing to run. \u201cI think if Wes had triggered, we would have pushed the Ed button. And I think he could have been persuaded,\u201d another soft-left MP said. \u201cBut everyone would have been very aware it was plan B.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLou was the person who seized the initiative at that point,\u201d one of Burnham\u2019s team said. \u201cIt was her, more than anyone, who anticipated that May was the moment where the NEC would move.\u201d<\/p>\n

Louise Haigh (left) speaks beside Anneliese Midgley after Burnham\u2019s byelection win. Photograph: Ryan Jenkinson\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Haigh went to see Burnham again in March. \u201cAndy had been saying \u2018well, if people want me then I\u2019ll do it\u2019. And we had to be like \u2018you have to meet the PLP [parliamentary Labour party] halfway here\u2019,\u201d one insider said.<\/p>\n

Burnham agreed in those weeks that he would try again in earnest after May and that this time he would be \u201cupfront about why he wants to come back and challenge the leadership to defy the party\u2019s wishes\u201d.<\/p>\n

Rayner was among those who were far more sceptical about whether Burnham\u2019s path back to Westminster was realistic. \u201cAngela was making people very aware that she was here and Andy was not,\u201d one MP close to Burnham said.<\/p>\n

Burnham met Rayner at her constituency home in Ashton in April but left without any agreement or pact. Rayner went to meet Haigh but, again, no deal was reached.<\/p>\n

Makerfield opening<\/p>\n

On the night of the elections, Haigh was at her local count in Sheffield watching Labour lose all but three of the seats it had held. She and Midgeley called for Starmer to go in the days that followed.<\/p>\n

The operation began in earnest then to secure a seat for Burnham. A tight circle of only three or four people were involved. Multiple sources say the seat identified was Manchester Rusholme, held by Afzal Khan. But he denied it, when it began to leak.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was as good as it got. No 10 got to him that Sunday,\u201d one of those involved in the search said. Inquiries were made of the St Helens South and Whiston MP, Marie Rimmer, and multiple others. It was then that Simons entered the conversation.<\/p>\n

Simons, who friends said was \u201cradicalised\u201d by his Makerfield constituency, knew the polls meant he would stand no chance of re-election himself. He believed Burnham was the only politician who could win in a seat like Makerfield. And by May he was also in need of redemption after his ministerial resignation<\/a> over the Labour Together scandal.<\/p>\n

Burnham embraces Josh Simons, who had stepped aside for him in Makerfield. Photograph: Temilade Adelaja\/Reuters<\/p>\n

Burnham went to see Simons at his house in the constituency. Simons\u2019 wife, Leah, a Harvard-educated economist, had just given birth to their third child. But in the two hours they spent with the mayor, the couple grilled him on economics and how he would approach a potential bond market reaction.<\/p>\n

Makerfield, next door to Burnham\u2019s old patch of Leigh, was 29th on the Reform target list. Several of Burnham\u2019s closest allies, including Haigh, advised him not to go for it. Multiple sources say there were at least two safer seats as options.<\/p>\n

\u201cAndy really wanted that patch, he wanted to march into the heart of a Reform seat, and that would be the mandate,\u201d one of his team said. \u201cHe would not have had that mandate if he had won Gorton and Denton.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was confidence that the political authority of Starmer was no longer enough to block Burnham again. \u201cI honestly don\u2019t think the organisation down here got any better,\u201d one MP said. \u201cIt was the demand side, not the supply side.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burnham had filmed part of the launch video before he was even sure he would get a constituency. One of his social media gurus, Ali Milani , filmed his interactions in Manchester city centre. Days later, he came back to film the first part of the video in Makerfield, after the deal with Simons.<\/p>\n

It was Midgeley, the seasoned organiser, who now ran the ship. Every Labour MP who ventured up to Makerfield to be briefed at the now fabled Stubshaw Cross community centre for the Labour campaign said it was a tight race. But the inside data almost instantly began to show that was not the case. It was already looking exceptionally favourable to Burnham by the second week of the campaign.<\/p>\n

Route to No 10<\/p>\n

On the night of the result, Rotheram sent the soon-to-be MP a message in which he predicted him winning 49% of the vote. \u201cI\u2019ll take that, lad,\u201d Burnham replied, adding: \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to be that.\u201d In the end, his victory was far more substantial \u2013 a 55% share \u2013 which has propelled Burnham on a dizzyingly fast route to No 10.<\/p>\n

Burnham in a taxi at Euston station on the day of Starmer\u2019s resignation. Photograph: James Veysey\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

For Rotheram, who convinced Burnham to leave Westminster nine years ago, it has been years in the making. \u201cI remember reading about the Beatles working hard for four or five years to be an overnight success. This for Andy is the culmination of 16 years of work,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

By the time Burnham had made it down on a delayed Avanti West Coast train to London and Westminster Hall, Starmer had resigned<\/a>. It was the sheer weight of the inevitable.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven the most loyal Keir people know they have a better chance of keeping their seats with Andy,\u201d one of the MPs who greeted him said. \u201cThat\u2019s not saying he is the messiah. But it is a fact.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burnham has now less than a fortnight \u2013 in a cramped office loaned to him by the Bury South MP, Christian Wakeford \u2013 to build a new government. It is a bit soft left, it is a bit New Labour, it is bit Blue Labour, but it is definitely Lou Labour.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The third coming of Andy Burnham began in earnest on the dancefloor of the Ministry of Sound. It…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":659854,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-659853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-kingdom","tag-gb","tag-great-britain","tag-greatbritain","tag-news","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=659853"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659853\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/659854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=659853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=659853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=659853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}