Labour leadership tensions deepen as Starmer, Burnham rivalry shapes Makerfield test

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Labour leadership tensions Makerfield

Highlights

Makerfield by-election is a pivotal test as a Burnham win could strengthen his challenge to Starmer’s leadership within Labour.
Defence Secretary John Healey’s resignation and Burnham’s ambiguous compensation stance add pressure on Starmer’s authority and Labour’s internal stability.
At least 163 Labour payroll MPs are expected to support Starmer, but potential mass resignations to back rivals like Burnham or Streeting threaten frequent cabinet reshuffles.

Makerfield vote raises leadership stakes

As reported by Financial Times, the contest in Makerfield is becoming a key test for Labour as Burnham is widely expected to beat Reform UK and use any victory to build momentum against Starmer.

People close to the prime minister say the tension between the two men stretches back years, including Starmer’s time on Burnham’s shadow home affairs team in 2015. Starmer’s allies argue that he stayed in Westminster to rebuild Labour’s electoral credibility, while they view Burnham’s move to become Greater Manchester mayor in 2017 as a less demanding path.

Burnham’s camp, meanwhile, sees Starmer’s team as responsible for hostile briefings during both opposition and government. Relations improve briefly when Sue Gray serves as Starmer’s chief of staff, and Burnham and his adviser Kevin Lee continue to regard her highly as she now advises the mayor in the background.

Starmer also comes under renewed scrutiny after Defence Secretary John Healey resigns in protest over what he sees as inadequate extra funding. Burnham’s recent intervention on compensation for women born in the 1950s adds to doubts inside Starmer’s team, after the mayor first says those affected deserve compensation and then suggests non-financial remedies such as concessionary bus travel when the potential cost is highlighted.

Resignation risks weigh on Labour stability

Starmer says there are no easy decisions and argues that any prime minister would face the same pressures. Even so, Labour MPs are discussing whether Burnham can quickly secure support from 150 or more MPs if Makerfield strengthens his position.

Some MPs question whether Burnham should have his policy platform tested in a full leadership contest rather than arriving in Downing Street without a fully formed plan. Starmer insists he will fight to win any challenge, while the Institute for Government calculates last November that at least 163 Labour MPs are part of the payroll vote, including ministers, parliamentary private secretaries and trade envoys expected to stay loyal.

That bloc, usually a source of strength, could become a liability if ministers and aides resign to support another candidate. MPs say Starmer has indicated that anyone backing Burnham or another rival in a leadership race would have to quit, raising the prospect of repeated reshuffles after the departures of Healey and junior defence minister Al Carns.

Labour MPs also mention Healey, Carns and former health secretary Wes Streeting as possible contenders. Some ministers now believe Streeting could secure the support needed to force a contest, reflecting a wider concern that the party may seek an open battle rather than a smooth transfer of power.

U.S. deficit and debt concerns are resurfacing as higher interest rates push the debt-to-GDP ratio above 100% and make debt servicing one of the government’s biggest spending lines. Our earlier coverage noted that elevated Treasury yields are feeding through to household costs—especially mortgages—reviving electoral pressure for fiscal restraint even without a bond-market shock.

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