14 h. ago Tories withdraw ‘mental health’ briefing about Suella Braverman after former Tory home secretary joins Reform – UK politics live

Her defection means there are now eight Reform MPs in the CommonsKeir Starmer was being interview by Beth Rigby from Sky News this morning when he defended the decision not to let Andy Burnham be a byelection candidate.After Starmer delivered his first answer (see 10.15am), Rigby asked him to what he would say to Labour MPs who think he is being “cowardly” and just blocking Burnham to avoid the risk of a leadership contest.Millions of people will be better off if we have the continuation of a Labour government in Wales, and if we’re able to win the government in Scotland and retain and win councils across England.When I came into politics in 2015, the first thing I did was support Andy Burnham’s leadership campaign. The first team I worked in was for Andy Burnham. And in the job he’s doing now, he and I work closely together ..So there’s no question of me and Andy not working very well together. He’s doing an excellent job.The battle of our times is the battle between patriotic, Lab...

Society

16 h. ago Labour says Farage ‘stuffing his party full of failed Tories’ after Suella Braverman joins Reform – UK politics live

Her defection comes shortly after Robert Jenrick joined Nigel Farage’s party, meaning there are now eight Reform MPs in the CommonsKeir Starmer was being interview by Beth Rigby from Sky News this morning when he defended the decision not to let Andy Burnham be a byelection candidate.After Starmer delivered his first answer (see 10.15am), Rigby asked him to what he would say to Labour MPs who think he is being “cowardly” and just blocking Burnham to avoid the risk of a leadership contest.Millions of people will be better off if we have the continuation of a Labour government in Wales, and if we’re able to win the government in Scotland and retain and win councils across England.When I came into politics in 2015, the first thing I did was support Andy Burnham’s leadership campaign. The first team I worked in was for Andy Burnham. And in the job he’s doing now, he and I work closely together ..So there’s no question of me and Andy not working very well together. He’s doing an excellen...

Politics

17 h. ago ‘I feel like I’ve come home’: former Tory home secretary Suella Braverman defects to Reform UK – UK politics live

Her defection comes shortly after Robert Jenrick joined Nigel Farage’s party, meaning there are now eight Reform MPs in the Commons.Keir Starmer was being interview by Beth Rigby from Sky News this morning when he defended the decision not to let Andy Burnham be a byelection candidate.After Starmer delivered his first answer (see 10.15am), Rigby asked him to what he would say to Labour MPs who think he is being “cowardly” and just blocking Burnham to avoid the risk of a leadership contest.Millions of people will be better off if we have the continuation of a Labour government in Wales, and if we’re able to win the government in Scotland and retain and win councils across England.When I came into politics in 2015, the first thing I did was support Andy Burnham’s leadership campaign. The first team I worked in was for Andy Burnham. And in the job he’s doing now, he and I work closely together ..So there’s no question of me and Andy not working very well together. He’s doing an excelle...

Society

19 h. ago Starmer brushes off claims blocking Burnham from byelection was ‘cowardly’ – UK politics live

PM praises Manchester mayor and urges Labour to unite to fight Reform Keir Starmer was being interview by Beth Rigby from Sky News this morning when he defended the decision not to let Andy Burnham be a byelection candidate.After Starmer delivered his first answer (see 10.15am), Rigby asked him to what he would say to Labour MPs who think he is being “cowardly” and just blocking Burnham to avoid the risk of a leadership contest.Millions of people will be better off if we have the continuation of a Labour government in Wales, and if we’re able to win the government in Scotland and retain and win councils across England.When I came into politics in 2015, the first thing I did was support Andy Burnham’s leadership campaign. The first team I worked in was for Andy Burnham. And in the job he’s doing now, he and I work closely together ..So there’s no question of me and Andy not working very well together. He’s doing an excellent job.The battle of our times is the battle between patriotic...

Politics

20 h. ago Starmer defends blocking Burnham from standing in byelection – UK politics live

PM says holding a mayoral election in Manchester would divert resources from local council, Scottish and Welsh campaigns for LabourKeir Starmer has defended the decision not to allow Andy Burnham to stand to be Labour’s candidate in the Gorton and Denton byelection. Starmer was on the 10-strong panel that took the near-unanimous decision to block Burnham yesterday, and, speaking to broadcasters today, he set out the same argument used by Douglas Alexander earlier. (See 8.51am.) Starmer said:We have really important elections already across England for local councils, very important elections in Wales for the government there and very important elections in Scotland for the Scottish government that will affect millions of people. And we’re out campaigning on the cost of living and they’re very important elections.We need all of our focus on those elections.There’s also a political point here. What does our constitution say as a democratic socialist party? “By the strength of our comm...

Politics

21 h. ago Burnham suggests Labour more likely to lose byelection after blocking him – UK politics live

Minister defends move, saying that a mayoral campaign in Greater Manchester would have ‘a substantial and disproportionate impact’ on party resourcesThere are claims this morning saying Labour MPs opposed to the decision to block Andy Burnham from being a candidate in the Gorton and Denton byelection will try to get the issued referred to a full meeting of Labour’s national executive committee, in the hope that the NEC will reverse it. The decision yesterday was taken by the NEC’s 1o-strong officers’ group, which is dominated by leadership loyalists.The NEC as a whole has about 40 members, and it contains people who would vote against Keir Starmer on this issue. But the leadership still has a clear majority on the NEC. In their story in the Times, Max Kendix, Steven Swinford and Oliver Wright say:In private, allies of Burnham in ­Westminster are looking at ways to overturn the decision, including the ­possibility of trying to convene an emergency meeting of the whole ­40-strong NEC,...

Politics

61 h. ago LIVE: Andy Burnham announces he wants to stand in Gorton and Denton by

The mayor of Greater Manchester has released a statement

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