Burnham to launch byelection campaign as Green candidate quits after just nine hours – UK politics live | Politics

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics.

Andy Burnham is set to officially launch his campaign as the Labor candidate in the Makerfield by-election This morning he wants to return to parliament after nine years.

Also this morning, the Greens restarted the process of selecting candidates for the by-election. Chris Kennedy He withdrew less than 12 hours after being announced as the party’s candidate.

We will hear from Burnham at around 10.45am for the official launch, although she has already been photographed in her Greater Manchester constituency this week and is preparing to poll.

He is expected to challenge Keir Starmer If she becomes an MP, she will run for the Labor leadership, but the prime minister has said he will campaign to support Burnham ahead of the vote on June 18.

“Yes, and I’ve said to the whole Labor movement that whatever the other debates are, I want everyone to get involved in the campaign, that’s really important; it’s a direct fight between Labor and Reform,” Starmer said.

Meanwhile, the Greens’ by-election candidate Kennedy withdrew from the vote nine hours after it was announced, with the party citing “personal and family reasons”.

Times He said he approached Kennedy about a series of social media posts he shared about the attack on Jewish ambulances in north London in April. In an Instagram video shared by Kennedy, the arrest of two men over the incident was described as “a complete farce to keep the false flag flying,” the newspaper reported.

Read the full report here:

In other news, the Guardian’s business correspondent Lauren Almeida reports Britain’s government borrowing reached its second highest level on record in April as pressure on public finances continues to mount. Official figures showed a £24.3bn deficit in Britain’s finances last month. Follow our live business blog for more Here.