Andy Burnham said Labour had a “final chance to change” after his decisive win in the Makerfield by-election set up a showdown with Sir Keir Starmer.
Allies of Mr Burnham called on the Prime Minister to hand over power after he defied national trends to increase Labour’s share of the vote in a seat where Nigel Farage’s Reform UK made sweeping gains in last month’s local elections.
The Prime Minister has insisted he will not quit and will fight any leadership challenge.
Mr Burnham defeated Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon by 9,231 votes, up from 5,399 in 2024, and Labour’s vote share increased by 9.61%.
In his victory speech he urged his party to act now, saying there would be no second chance.
He said: “Everyone knows that politics isn’t working.
“Everyone can feel that the country isn’t where it should be. Tonight could, just could, be the turning point.”
In a direct message to Labour MPs he said: “I do say to my own party: this is a final chance to change.
“This is what people said directly to me on the hundreds of doorsteps that I stood on. We must hear it, we must act upon it and we must get it right. There will be no second chance.”
Mr Burnham gave up the Greater Manchester mayoralty by becoming Makerfield MP, winning the seat that was vacated by Josh Simons in order to allow him the chance of returning to Westminster and seek to become prime minister.
In an attempt at addressing the assertion that he was only seeking to become Makerfield’s MP to further his own ambitions, he said: “It will never be a stepping stone to me, but instead will be my touchstone.
“A Makerfield test at the heart of British politics will make sure that the places Westminster has neglected will now get fairness.”
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