Burnham selected as Labour candidate in Makerfield

IT WAS less of a selection and more of a coronation as Andy Burnham was chosen as Labour’s candidate. He was the only person who had applied to be selected.

It is not yet clear whether local Labour Party members met to consider who to put forward or whether any deliberations were swerved in favour of an instant appointment. It is also not yet clear whether Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) has officially endorsed Burnham as the candidate. As they gave him the green light to stand for selection, presumably they will endorse him, but you can never guarantee what the NEC will do.

Burnham has now overcome two hurdles which lie in his path to being Leader of the Labour Party. He has been allowed to stand for selection and he has been selected. The next step is to win the by-election.

Burnham will be taking on Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon, who stood in Makerfield in the 2024 General Election – and lost. You spend ages trying to get hold of a plumber, and then two come along at once. Kenyon is a local plumber, just like Hannah Spencer, Green candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election earlier this year – the one where the Labour NEC stopped Burnham from standing.

Keir Starmer has yet to comment on Burnham’s selection. Nigel Farage got in quickly. Having promised to “throw everything” into winning the by-election campaign, he characterised the coming contest as a David versus Goliath battle, in which the “Plucky Plumber” will be taking on “Open Borders Burham” – neatly polarising the process. The Greens have indicated that they will be standing, and other parties have not yet officially declared candidates.

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