The contest to replace Angela Rayner as deputy leader is expected to become a “referendum” for Labour members on Keir Starmer’s government, senior party figures have told The Independent.
With anger about the attempted welfare cuts and Middle East policy in particular, as well as the added threat of Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party emerging, Sir Keir appears set to be faced with a serious internal challenge as the result of Ms Rayner’s enforced departure.
One senior figure to hint at the difficulty for the party leadership of the contest ahead was Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham. He said Sir Keir Starmer’s government needs “a reset”, urging the PM to use Labour’s deputy leadership contest as a discussion on the future of the Labour Party.
The Greater Manchester mayor said the prime minister must listen to and respect Labour MPs more and called on his Downing Street operation to be “less factional and more pluralistic”.
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With Labour 10 points behind Nigel Farage’s Reform in the latest polls, others privately have been harsher.
One Labour MP said: “Members are not happy. We appear to be doing all the wrong things. We are not strong enough over Israel’s genocide, we appear to be trying to balance the books on the poorest. This will be a referendum for Labour members.”
A Blairite former minister from the right of the party warned: “There is a real danger for Keir here. People are not likely to fall into line to support his preferred candidate they may well vote for a candidate from the left of the party.”
A reshuffled minister added: “He will deserve what he gets.”
The contest to replace Angela Rayner was triggered after she was forced to step down following a critical report by ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus into her failure to pay £40,000 of stamp duty on her flat in Brighton.
Labour’s ruling national executive committee (NEC) meets on Monday to set out the rules and timeline of the contest, including how many nominations from MPs potential candidates will need to make the ballot.
Sir Keir has already made David Lammy deputy prime ministerin a bid to stop his move from foreign secretary to justice secretary appearing to be a demotion. He is reportedly pushing for new home secretary Shabana Mahmood to run for deputy leader.
But already Dame Emily Thornberry on Sunday became the first high profile candidate to say she is considering a run. The senior MP and chair of parliament’s foreign affairs committee has grown her influence since Sir Keir snubbed her for a cabinet job after the general election and would likely emerge as a favourite.
She offered a damning assessment of Sir Keir’s government telling the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that “nobody seems to be hearing about” the government’s achievements.
“They hear about the mistakes, and the question is, why are we making these mistakes?” she added.
Asked why, she said: “I think it’s not listening to people of goodwill who want the party to succeed. I think we need to do more of that, because I think that the answers are out there, but I think that we need to continue to listen and learn from the public.”
Meanwhile Mr Burnham, one of Labour’s most powerful figures outside of Westminster, said that Labour MPs must be respected more going forward. “That is the debate we should have during the deputy leadership contest,” he said. “I would say more broadly that it also needs to be a bit of a reset for the government,” he added.
Mr Burnham said he was “concerned about the balance” of Sir Keir’s cabinet following the weekend’s emergency reshuffle, and that “we need to use the contest to discuss some of those things”.
He said: “It is right to have a discussion about the internal management of the Labour Party. And in a time where the scale and the nature of the challenge we face is such as it is, you need everybody pulling together, all parts of the party pulling together.
“And that points to a party management style that is less factional and more pluralistic. Labour MPs need to listen to them more and respect them more.” Ms Burnham said he would like to see former Commons leader Lucy Powell or ex-transport secretary Louise Haigh elected deputy leader.
Other potential candidates to emerge over the weekend included Dawn Butler, who stood in 2020’s deputy leadership contest and Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, who also ran in the last race.
Sir Keir is reportedly set to encourage his new home secretary Shabana Mahmood to stand in the contest in a bid to see off any potential left-wing challengers. But left-wing and soft left MPs are likely to rally around a candidate in the race in a bid to pile pressure on the PM and ensure their wing of the party maintains influence.
John Healey said David Lammy’s appointment as deputy prime minister does not mean he is Downing Street’s preferred candidate in the deputy leadership contest.
Asked whether the former foreign secretary’s new role suggested he was Sir Keir Starmer’s favourite for deputy leader, the Defence Secretary told Sky News: “No it doesn’t.
“They’re two separate jobs, two very important jobs. The deputy leader of the Labour Party is an important job and an important vote for Labour Party members.”
