Keir Starmer breaks silence after Labour defeat in Gorton and Denton by-election
Keir Starmer has described Labour’s crushing by-election defeat in Gorton and Denton as “very disappointing” – but insisted he understood voters’ frustration.
The Prime Minister dismissed questions over whether he would resign and vowed to “keep on fighting” for the people who needed a Labour government despite the Green’s victory. Mr Starmer said: “I came into politics late in life to fight for change for those people who need it. I will keep on fighting for those people for as long as I’ve got breath in my body.”
The PM also pledged to “fight against extremes in politics” on both the left and the right that threatened to “tear our country apart” in his first public comments since Labour lost the Greater Manchester seat to the Greens.
In a major upset for the PM, Zack Polanski’s Green party overturned Labour’s massive majority in Gorton and Denton. The Green’s Hannah Spencer stormed to victory comfortably taking the seat with 14,980 votes, a majority of 4,402 over Reform’s Matt Goodwin. Labour’s Angeliki Stogia won 9,364 votes.
It came as ex-Deputy PM Angela Rayner said Labour’s loss in Gorton and Denton must act as a “wake-up call” for the party. She posted on X: “This result must be a wake up call. It’s time to really listen – and to reflect.
“Voters want the change that we promised – and they voted for. If we want to unrig the system, if we want to make the change we were sent into Government to make, we have to be braver.
“A labour agenda that puts people first. That’s what all of us across our movement need to rededicate ourselves to this morning.”
The Mainstream Labour group, which is backed by Andy Burnham, added it was a “catastrophic error” to block the Greater Manchester mayor from standing in Gorton and Denton. Earlier this month Mr Burnham was blocked by Labour’s ruling national executive committee (NEC) – including Mr Starmer – from fighting the by-election.
A statement from Mainstream’s interim council said today: “The Gorton and Denton result is an absolute disaster for Labour. Clearly, we now risk no longer being seen as the natural home for progressive voters.
“This loss was avoidable. Angeliki, members and our party staff worked tirelessly, but our leader and sections of the NEC blocked the one candidate who could have won it for us. That decision now looks like a catastrophic error. We need an immediate and fundamental reset now.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has said the Government will “reflect and learn from” Labour’s defeat in the Gorton and Denton by-election. She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the result makes her “even more determined” to “deliver change”.
“We will reflect and we will learn from this decision,” Ms Alexander said.
“You would expect me to say that as a member of the Cabinet, but it makes me even more determined than I have ever been to deliver the change that the country voted for in 2024 and that is an economy where we’ve got investment coming in, where our public services are of a standard that the public deserve and rightly expect, and where we provide opportunity for all.”
