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Labour’s high command is attempting to bounce Andy Burnham into a super-quick decision on a Commons by-election comeback, giving him just 24 hours to decide.
The party has published a timetable, with the whole selection process being completed next Saturday, suggesting Labour could be planning a dash to the polls as early as next month.
As the prime minister’s popularity has plunged in opinion polls, allies have urged Mr Burnham – Labour’s king of the north – to return to the Commons, potentially to seize Sir Keir Starmer’s crown.
Today he received a top endorsement when former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said Mr Burnham should be allowed to stand in the forthcoming by-election.
But in an announcement at 5pm on Friday, the party’s ruling national executive declared that he has only until 5pm on Saturday to seek permission to stand as a by-election candidate.
That means he only has hours to make up his mind on a decision that will make or break his political career: whether to stand in the looming Gorton and Denton by-election, or wait for another opportunity.
As well as the 24-hour ultimatum facing Mr Burnham, the rest of the timetable for the by-election is brutally short. Applications opened at 5pm on Friday and will close at midnight on Sunday night.
A longlist of candidates, probably six, will be drawn up on Monday by a selection panel, shortlisting interviews will be held on Tuesday and hustings and selection will take place next Saturday.
If Mr Burnham does apply and is selected, the constituency in Greater Manchester, where Mr Burnham has been mayor since 2017, is set to host the most high-profile box-office by-election in decades.
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The by-election has been…
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