How team Burnham finally cleared the first of many hurdles on route to Westminster

"For weeks, Andy Burnham's supporters had told MPs to hold the line, that he had a seat in parliament in his sights and that he would be a contender in any leadership contest. That was never the full truth. His path to No 10 if he makes it is littered with more failed attempts than almost any other politician. Two leadership contests, a block on a return in Gorton and Denton, and quite a few aggrieved MPs in the north west who have had to spend weeks batting off suggestions they will give their seats up for him."

"By Thursday this week, with almost all the likely contenders ruling themselves out, Burnham's backers in parliament were getting desperate. Only the tiniest handful of the Greater Manchester mayor's closest advisers knew the truth: there was finally a seat coming which no one expected. When Wes Streeting announced at 1pm on Thursday that he was resigning from Keir Starmer's cabinet, it set off a bombshell ; outwardly, things did not look hopeful."

"Streeting had not launched a leadership bid, and Burnham still ostensibly had no seat in Westminster from which to make his own challenge. Locked out of parliament, Burnham seemed to be no further on than when he made his last leadership tilt, which was ended by the Labour national executive committee's refusal to let him run in the Gorton and Denton byelection. The mood among his supporters was bleak. It's a shit cocktail, said one. We're all doomed."

"Behind the scenes, his team got to work and finally, on Thursday, an opportunity appeared. It was always a case of just sitting and waiting, said one source close to Burnham. While there was not an obvious seat, the sense was that Labour's dismal performance in Gorton and Denton, plus disastrous results in the local election, could u"

Supporters urged MPs to hold their positions, claiming Andy Burnham had a Westminster seat within reach and would contend for leadership. His route to No 10 included multiple failed attempts, a block on a return in Gorton and Denton, and ongoing pressure from aggrieved MPs in the north west. By Thursday, most likely contenders had ruled themselves out, and Burnham’s backers in parliament became desperate. Wes Streeting’s resignation from Keir Starmer’s cabinet at 1pm initially looked unpromising because Burnham still lacked an obvious Westminster seat. With Burnham locked out of parliament, his situation appeared unchanged from his last blocked leadership tilt. Behind the scenes, his team waited for an unexpected opening tied to Labour’s poor local performance.

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