Andy Burnham has announced he intends to stand in the Gorton and Denton by-election, a move that could see him returning to the House of Commons. The announcement was made on Saturday afternoon, meeting the 5pm deadline set for the by-election decision. 

The current Mayor of Greater Manchester said he had sought permission to run in the upcoming by-election with Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC). The NEC can still block his bid for selection by refusing permission, and supporters of the Prime Minister are reported to be mobilising to prevent him from becoming a candidate.

However, in his announcement, Mr Burnham issued a key three-word message to Labour and Sir Keir Starmer. The move, he said, is meant to back the Government - "not undermine it". He also said the decision to seek a return to the Commons had been “difficult”, but now was “the moment to mount the strongest possible defence of what we stand for”.

In a letter to the NEC asking for permission to stand, Mr Burnham said he had “given careful thought to what is in the best interests of our party and the city region I represent” following the announcement of a by-election “nobody wanted or expected”.

He argued there was now “a direct threat to everything Greater Manchester has always been about from a brand of politics which seeks to pit people against each other”.

He added: “I see this by-election as the front line of that fight for the Manchester way and I feel I owe it to a city which has given me so much to lead it from the front, despite the risks involved.”

MORE TO FOLLOW