Sir Keir Starmer last night failed to commit to visiting the Manchester constituency where Labour is fighting to win a crucial by-election – as Labour MPs said he would not be welcome.
The Prime Minister refused three times to say he would join the ground campaign in Gorton and Denton where his party faces a battle to stop its former voters deserting to the Greens as well as trying to keep Reform out.
He insisted the looming contest – in which he blocked Labour mayor and potential leadership rival Andy Burnham from standing – will be a straight fight between Labour and the ‘plastic patriots’ of Reform.
Sir Keir did not once visit another north-west by-election campaign a year ago, which Labour lost to Reform by just six votes, and his comments will revive suspicions he will be kept away again by Labour HQ because of his record low popularity across the country.
He was asked by reporters accompanying him on his trip to China and Japan early on Saturday if he would be going to Gorton and Denton and replied: ‘Firstly I think we’re selecting our candidate this morning and then we’ll set out our campaign plan. But I’ve been campaigning all the time across the country.’
He went on: ‘In relation to the by-election, it is very much clearly now a by-election between Labour and Reform on key principles.’
Sir Keir pointed out that far-right activist Tommy Robinson has recently endorsed Reform’s candidate for the February 26th vote.
‘That tells you everything about the politics they intend to inject into this by-election, the politics of poisonous division, so we can see exactly where that’s going,’ the PM said.
The Prime Minister refused three times to say he would join the ground campaign in Gorton and Denton where his party faces a battle to stop its former voters deserting to the Greens as well as trying to keep Reform out
Labour chose Manchester councillor Angeliki Stogia (pictured) as its candidate for Gorton and Denton
‘So it’s Labour versus Reform, and we will fight for renewal, for inclusive communities and bringing people together, and for true patriotism against the plastic patriotism of Reform. Only Labour can beat Reform, and therefore it’s the only way to win this by election.’
Pressed on whether he will go canvassing himself, the PM said: ‘We’ll set our campaign plan when we’ve got our candidate in place later on this morning. But I will be campaigning across the country, as I always do.’
Asked if he meant for the by-election or crucial local polls in May, Sir Keir said: ‘No, I’m campaigning all the time. We’ll put out the plan after we’ve done the selection of the candidates.’
One Labour MP told the MoS: ‘You won’t see him in Gorton. He’s toxic, and a Londoner to boot. He gets altitude sickness up there’.
A year ago the PM stayed away from the by-election campaign in Runcorn and Labour lost the contest to Reform.
Afterwards Ellie Reeves, then party chairman, was asked why he had not visited and replied: ‘Prime ministers don’t normally campaign in by-elections.’
Since then Sir Keir’s popularity has dropped even further as his Government has been forced into U-turning on a string of policies and struggled to deliver on its pre-election promises.
Latest polling by YouGov puts his net favourability rating on minus 57, his lowest to date and the worst of any Prime Minister apart from short-lived Liz Truss.
Later yesterday Labour chose Manchester councillor Angeliki Stogia as its candidate for Gorton and Denton, after Mr Burnham was controversially barred from standing in the seat vacated by Andrew Gwynne after the Mail on Sunday revealed his offensive messages.
She told a crowd at the launch event she was a ‘proud Mancunian woman’ who had ‘walked the streets of this constituency’.
‘This is about Manchester. Manchester is a city united, we are rejecting division. I am so looking forward to going out on the doorstep and winning this for Labour,’ she said.