Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has refused to rule out a Labour leadership bid. Asked on BBC Radio Manchester whether he’d consider ditching his mayoral post for a tilt at the top job, Burnham teased:
“If events change, I’m not necessarily going to be stuck religiously in one way of thinking. The country is in a reasonably turbulent place. I have never ruled out going back to Westminster. Obviously, I do watch what is going on down there, so I’m not going to say not.”
Meanwhile, Labour sources have told Guido that Andrew Gwynne, Labour MP for Gorton and Denton, is considering giving up the seat as soon as he finds a new gig. A by-election there could hand Burnham a ticket back into Parliament, provided he outmuscles the NEC. And beats Reform on the day…
Burnham confirms he spoke to Trump last night about drilling in the North Sea:
“I indicated in the phone call that we had a week last Monday that I would take a pragmatic approach when it comes to the North Sea, and that is my intention as we go forward from here. There is a resource there. When people are struggling, we can’t ignore that. Hence, me indicating that to the president…”