Labour MP hints he would give up seat for Andy Burnham to mount Starmer leadership challenge
Labor MP Clive Lewis has said he would be willing to give up his parliamentary seat to allow Andy Burnham to enter the leadership challenge against Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr Lewis said he would be willing to give up his Norwich South constituency for the Greater Manchester mayor to return to the House of Commons, months after Mr Burnham was touted as a possible successor to the prime minister.
Speculation has dominated Labour’s autumn conference that Mr Burnham, who quit the House of Commons in 2017, wanted to challenge the Prime Minister for the party leadership after repeatedly hinting that he was eyeing a Westminster return.
speaking to the BBC Politics Live On Wednesday Mr Lewis said: “That’s a question I’ve been asking myself and of course I need to check with my wife and my family, but you know what? If I sit here and say country before party, party before personal ambition, then yes, I should say yes, right?”
Mr Lewis last week called for the Greater Manchester mayor to return to Parliament, saying Sir Keir’s stance was “indefensible” and that he should “put country before party” and step down as leader.
It comes after suggestions potential leadership candidates were eyeing difficulties after the civil war broke out at the Labor Party summit last week.
Health secretary Wes Streeting was forced to refute accusations that he was plotting a coup to oust Sir Keir and allies of former deputy leader Angela Rayner were also forced to reject a bid to oust the prime minister.
The bitter row led to rebel Sir Keir vowing to lead Labor at the next general election as he criticized speculation over his future as a waste of time.
And at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday this week he went further, warning his ministers not to talk “about ourselves”.
Sir Keir told ministers that the “distraction” of recent weeks had meant the government’s focus had “shifted from the most important place” and called for unity within the party.
Meanwhile, MPs on the left of the party are reportedly continuing preparations for a potential leadership race.
Accordingly TimesSenior MPs in the Tribune Group have yet to unite around a single candidate but are believed to be able to secure the support of the 80 MPs needed for any contest.
Following a poll by YouGov, 23 per cent of Labor voters think he should step down from the senior post now, while a further 22 per cent think he should stand down before the next election in 2029 at the latest. Just 34 per cent think Labor should be leading by then.
