Why isn't Starmer blocking Burnham?

Bizarre. Tell me in one sentence.

Burnham is the king of the north and shall be coronated!

Do mean he’ll be dunked in a vat of Corona?  I would have thought that ‘oop north’  there would be several better suited bitters or milds to choose from to fill the barrel for that job. 

Whatever’s wrong? Coronation Street is a national favourite 

Sir Keir's plan is to put on a disguise and an ill fitting suit in an England flag pattern and go door to door for Reform in Wigan.

3-ducks 15 May 26 00:07

Bizarre. Tell me in one sentence.

_____________________________________

doesn't have the political capital and clout to strongarm the NEC to block him this time 

 

personally I think it is bluddy stupid to give up a successful mayorship to run off to London and try to salvage a hindenberg government performance, but the PLP clearly think too much myopic Londonism has been the problem this past year and a half

Because party members are already pissed that he previously blocked him and seems the key committee has also turned on Starmer.

Will you be campaigning for the party in the forthcoming by election Prime Minister?

They have kind of outmanoeuvred Starmer on this one, he can’t be seen to block him again in the current climate

Burnham camp are being very arrogant though in assuming he will win. Reform will throw all their ill gotten resources at it. 

"Reform will throw all their ill gotten resources at it"

Heh! As if Reform is a traditional party that needs to spend lots of money.

People who think that because various wards in this constituency voted Reform a few days ago, they will vote Reform again on a by election, are a bit dim imo. 

People are fickle and irrational. They will vote against the government one day and for Burnham the next day. They don't actually want Farage to run the country, they just like messing with people.

He has to lance the boil.  If there is to be a fight it has to be now or the King in the North will haunt him for the rest of his leadership.

People like spurius are exactly, 100% how we ended up with Brexit.

Hth

Because even if he tried the other members of the committee making the decision would allow Burnham to stand and so he'd look like a massive tw1t.

If Starmer has accepted he is toast and wants Burnham to succeed him this is the best way to play it - to let him stand but also suggest that he will contest a leadership challenge. 

A lot of people within Labour and outside Labour want Starmer out, and if it looks like Andy Burnham MP will be the best/only route to unseating him, then he will do better in the byelection. If Starmer has already committed to leaving then I would expect Burnham to do worse, on the basis that a vote for him is no longer a vote to remove Starmer. 

It will be "funny" if AB gets beaten by Reform in the by election. 

How was it ok to block him a few weeks ago and now it's not. Its a bloody shambles and tbh whoever gets the poison chalice will get he same treatment. AB is not some miracle candidate and the press encouraged by the SM trolls will start on him.

So these bods on the NEC have done a complete volte face in the space of a few weeks? 

Starmer should surely try to block him anyway. If it fails, it will just make the rest of the NEC look like capricious idiots.

"If Starmer has already committed to leaving..."

If he has, why tf doesn't he say so?

I haven't seen any 'arrogance' from Burnham at all. I'm not even sure there's an assumption he'll win. He's aware it'll be a dogfight with Reform and he's prepared to gamble.

If he has, why tf doesn't he say so?

Because saying so hurts Burnham's chances in the byelection. 

People like me are not, in fact, exactly 100% how we ended up with Brexit.

I trust this obvious clarification assists with your hard thinking.

And that if AB wins the by election, you will immediately hold yourself responsible for Brexit.

Yes, it’s curious how the costs of a mayoral by election were key previously but now don’t matter. 

Maybe Nigel can pay for it put of his grifted £5m

The DM have already turned their sights to Burnham and he's not even an MP yet. 

 

It'll never end. 

Wasn't part of the decision a few weeks ago supposedly about the cost and resource required to fight a mayoral election at the same time as the locals - they've been and gone now so that doesn't fly.

That fig leaf was the best they had a few weeks ago, if they pull that stunt now there'd be proper uproar - at least this way Keir can maintain a bit of order and control.

A lady in the gym today talking to her friend, she is a journo with I think Sky. I was earwigging. She said she had a busy week (obv) and there was sime long patter I didnt really follow about the Streeting resignation yesterday, but the one thing she was pretty sure about was Starmer resigning today. He’ll be gone by 6pm news, was what she said, over and over.


Odd

Anyway.

They’re all got their own hot takes. Yesterday Peston was sure there was a letter being drafted dealing with him going.


Nothing yet, eh.

Won’t make any difference. Same old same old. Pro-war, pro-City. No real policies on addressing inequality. 

Burnham will absolutely crumble under any scrutiny. The reason his approval rating is so much higher than anyone else is because he's not an MP and he has a joke job.