Andy Burnham latest: Decision day for Labour as Starmer allies warned not to block mayor’s Commons bid
Manchester mayor will find out today if Labour will allow him to stand in the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election, paving the way for a potential leadership challenge
A decision on whether to allow Andy Burnham to run in the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election is expected today, with pressure mounting on allies of Sir Keir Starmer not to block him.
If the mayor of Greater Manchester is selected, it could pave the way for a return to parliament and a potential leadership challenge to Sir Keir.
Mr Burnham asked Labour’s powerful ruling body, the National Executive Committee (NEC), whose membership includes many Starmer loyalists, for permission to stand in the contest yesterday. They will meet on Sunday to decide whether to let him run.
Mr Burnham’s supporters have already warned the party not to use the NEC to block him, saying it would be “outrageous” and show that “nasty factionalism” was more important than beating Reform UK in the seat.
Sir Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, energy minister Ed Milliband and deputy Labour leader Lucy Powell are among those calling for local members to be allowed to decide who represents them in the by-election fight against Nigel Farage’s party and the Greens.
The powerful Labour group who will decide Burnham’s fate
Ten members of a powerful sub-committee of Labour's governing National Executive Committee will meet today to decide whether to give Andy Burnham permission to stand in the by-election, writes Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin.
The step is part of the party’s rules because of his current day job. Another election to replace him as the mayor of Greater Manchester risks costing the party hundreds of thousands of pounds, alongside the risk they could lose it to Reform.
The ten members of the group include Keir Starmer himself, who last year suggested Mr Burnham’s economic stance could lead him to become Labour’s Liz Truss. There is also Shabana Mahmood, who chairs the committee.
She called Mr Burnham an “exceptional politician” today, but they are on separate wings of the party and he could represent a threat to her own leadership ambitions. Also at the meeting will be Lucy Powell, Labour's deputy leader, and a Manchester MP known to be close to Mr Burnham.
As the sister of Starmer’s chancellor Rachel Reeves, Ellie Reeves, the solicitor general, is viewed as loyal to the current leadership, while Gurinder Singh Josan, a backbencher, is seen as a centrist and not part of the soft-left of the party supporting Burnham.
Making up the ten, for what Ms Mahmood said would be a "finely balanced" judgement are representatives from two large trade union, the GMB and USDAW, as well a Labour councillor, the party’s treasurer and a Constituency Labour Party representative.
Lid Dem leader Sir Ed Davey relieved Donald Trump 'backed down' from Afghanistan comments
Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey said he is relieved Donald Trump "backed down" on his suggestion Nato troops stayed "a little off" the front lines in Afghanistan, and is grateful the King wrote to the president to express concern.
Sir Ed told the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: "It was quite appalling for Donald trump to make those comments, so I am relieved he's backed down, and grateful to the King for his intervention.
"But it doesn't change my view on Donald Trump, and it doesn't change my view that this government's approach to Donald Trump is not the right one."
Watch: NEC could still impose all women shortlist in Burnham by-election, says Mahmood
Home secretary: We won't hesitate to take action over harassment of women with new tech
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has said she won’t hesitate to take action over harassment of women through new technologies after she was asked about people using smart glasses to secretly film women.
Speaking on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Ms Mahmood said: “I think the ability of technology to be used in way that can harass women, I think it’s an ever-changing environment. We’ve taken action against intimate image abuse on nudification apps, so we take these things very very seriously. We won’t tolerate new modes of technology being used to create more violence against women and girls, more harassment.
“I will obviously look at what this case is showing. We’ve taken action before, we won’t hesitate to take action again.”
The Independent’s Nicole Wooton-Cane spoke to women who had been filmed on the street by strangers wearing smart glasses. Read their story here:
‘A stranger stopped me and asked me for my number. I didn’t know he was filming me’
Leaked letter shows members of Labour’s powerful ruling body calling for ‘pause’ in Burnham decision amid fears of a stitch up
The BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme says it has seen a leaked letter calling for a pause in the process to decide whether or not to block Andy Burnham’s potential return to Parliament, writes Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin.
The home secretary Shabana Mahmood was told the leak showed a draft of a letter written by the full NEC, the party’s governing National Executive Committee, that suggested “any attempt to rule out certain candidates will be seen as undemocratic interference .. (and that) this current timetable should be paused so that the whole NEC committee should be included in setting out this timeline and this process.”
A sub-committee, chaired by Ms Mahmood, is due to decide on Mr Burnham’s fate later today.
She tried to brush off the criticism saying normal practice was being followed and that it was not unusual for the party to have “big rows over selection".
Earlier she said the decision was “finely balanced” for some members of the committee, because allowing him to stand risks triggering another by-election, to replace him as mayor of Greater Manchester, at a cost insiders claim could be around £1m.
Home secretary announces new 'British FBI' to run national police investigations
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has been explaining her new reforms to the police, which will create a National Police Service to deal with counter-terror and organised crime investigations centrally.
Speaking to the BBC, Ms Mahmood said: “The purpose of my reforms is to take all of those national capabilities, like Sussex for example do all of the country’s road policing, well they should worry about the people of Sussex.
“Take all of that into the National Police Service so they do the things that have to be done at a national level, like counter-terror policing and serious organised crime, then you have regional forces that within them have local police areas, whose one job and only job is to police their local areas and to deal with the everyday crime that we know breaks communities.”
Read more about Ms Mahmood’s plans for “Britain’s FBI” here:
New ‘British FBI’ to tackle terrorism and gang crime in major police shake up
Trump apology on Afghanistan is 'as good as it gets', home secretary says
Donald Trump's praise of British forces, in which he did not apologise directly for previous comments about Nato's role in Afghanistan, is "as good as it gets" from him, the home secretary has said.
Asked about Mr Trump's comments on Saturday, Shabana Mahmood told Sky News's Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: "I think it's a recognition that what was said initially was deeply offensive.
"It was really insulting to the memories of our brave soldiers who gave their lives in conflict and who came to the aid of the United States after Nato Article Five was invoked."
Asked whether it was really an apology, she said: "The president has his way.
"The prime minister, when they had a call to discuss matters relating to Ukraine and other other international issues, the Prime Minister did make the point directly to the president how we felt about the initial comments, and I think this was a response to that.
"With the president, I suspect this is as good as it gets."
The shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said that Mr Trump has to "think carefully about making future statements in such a flippant way" following his "appalling" comments on Nato troops in Afghanistan.
Asked if she believes the US president is "genuinely" sorry, Dame Priti told Trevor Phillips: "I think he is. I think he clearly recognises that what he has said was wrong, there's no doubt about that, but you know, he said it.
"And the reality is, I think there is a wider message here that he has to think carefully about making future statements in such a flippant way - that was just wrong and appalling."
Mahmood rules out BAME shortlist in seat where Burnham hopes to stand
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has squashed suggestions of an all-BAME (Black and minority ethnic) shortlist in the seat where Andy Burnham has applied for permission to stand, writes Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin.
She told Sky News the party sometimes has all-women shortlists but adds “you can’t by law have all ethnic minority shortlists. So there is a legal position there.”
Shabana Mahmood urges Labour to avoid ‘psychodrama’ over Burnham
Andy Burnham’s decision to throw his hat in the ring for this by-election has thrust Labour’s civil war over Keir Starmer’s future into the spotlight, writes Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin.
The home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, herself tipped as a potential leadership contender, today called for cool heads to prevail. She told Sky News that Labour “get to decide if we indulge in a psychodrama”.
Overnight the backlash against Mr Burnham among Labour MPs grew, with a second MP going public with his opposition.
Earlier another MP told The Independent that Mr Bunrham's decision was a "show of ego". But his supporters fear a powerful Labour committee, chaired by Ms Mahmood, will block his return to Westminster.
Mahmood: I trust Andy Burnham when he says he supports Sir Keir
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has said that she trusts Andy Burnham when he says he backs Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership.
Speaking to BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Ms Mahmood said: “Andy has said in his own words that Keir is the best prime minister and he’s made it very clear in his letter what his motivation is for coming into parliament.”
Asking by Laura Kuenssberg if she believed Mr Burnham, Ms Mahmood replied: “I do believe him because I take him at his word. I’ve never had any reason not to take him at his word. I trust him…And I am going to take what he says at face value, because I know I can do that with Andy.”
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