Falconer, who served as a cabinet minister under Tony Blair, told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program that “everyone assumes” Andy Burnham will run for the party leadership and likely win. Starmer, he said, is no longer able to effectively control his cabinet, lead the House of Commons, or negotiate with allies and opponents.
Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn criticized that the debate over a potential leadership contest between Starmer and Burnham focuses too much on personalities and too little on policy. Corbyn, who defeated Burnham in the 2015 Labour leadership election, told Sky News he gets along well with the newly elected Makerfield MP but rejects Burnham’s economic policy, which he says adopts too much of the mandated austerity.
Burnham won the Makerfield by-election decisively on Thursday. Reform UK candidate Robert Kenyon came second, increasing his vote share compared to the 2024 general election. A pro-Starmer memo seen by the Guardian argues that Burnham has “not yet faced a real test” and that a genuine contest would expose him to questions he has never had to answer.
Source: www.theguardian.com
