Overview

• Right‑leaning tabloids report a plan by disgruntled Manchester Labour figures to free up Andrew Gwynne’s Gorton and Denton seat so Andy Burnham could re‑enter Parliament and position for a leadership bid.
• Andrew Gwynne has denied he is poised to step down and a source close to Andy Burnham has denied any coup plotting, leaving the claims unconfirmed.
• Business Secretary Peter Kyle urged Burnham to stay as Greater Manchester mayor, while Manchester MP Graham Stringer called the pathway to Westminster “fraught with difficulties.”
• Nigel Farage said Reform UK would throw everything at any Burnham by‑election, with coverage noting Reform placed second locally and could be competitive on current polling.
• The speculation follows a reshuffle after Angela Rayner’s resignation and the Mandelson fallout, with Burnham backing Lucy Powell’s deputy leadership bid and launching his Mainstream network as Labour rules require a sitting MP to contest the leadership.