Keir Starmer will fly to China on Tuesday regardless of the political upheaval back home after he abruptly terminated a leadership bid by the mayor of Manchester that sharply divided the Labour Party.
After taking what supporters called “quick and decisive” action in blocking Andy Burnham’s bid to become an MP, the Prime Minister's official spokesman confirmed that he will head to Beijing for three days of talks, including a meeting with President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
Mr Burnham's bid to stand at a by-election to get into parliament and apparently challenge the Prime Minister’s leadership was halted by Labour’s national executive committee (NEC) on Sunday, at the Mr Starmer's direction. Mr Starmer opted to go for short-term political pain in the hope that he can contain the unrest in his party rather than have his most popular possible challenger sitting on the backbenches.
“Keir has led from the front, he hasn't hidden from the choice by being on the NEC panel and he’s acted quickly and decisively,” Jon Cruddas, a former Labour shadow minister, told The National. “I don't think he had any good options on this, and he's going to have quite a few tricky moments coming up as this decision might come back to haunt him.”
The Prime Minister had to “look at the best interests of the Labour Party, not the best interests of one person”, John Slinger, a backbench MP and supporter of Mr Starmer, told The National. A new by-election for the mayoral post, which would have cost up to £5 million to stage, is “absolutely not what the party needs”, he added.
“When you've got challenges at home, challenges abroad, that's the last thing the country needs. So I endorse the Prime Minister for acting so quickly and decisively.”
Political observers have also pointed to the parallels with the former Tory prime minister Boris Johnson, who returned to parliament in 2015 after his stint as mayor of London and undermined the authority of two prime ministers before he got the top job four years later.
Labour ructions
But the decision has caused ructions within Labour as its MPs look warily at polls that show Nigel Farage’s far-right Reform Party surging ahead.
That unease has led to behind-the-scenes discussions on unseating Mr Starmer – whose personal ratings are very low – and replacing him with a more popular prime minister. Mr Burnham’s tenure in Manchester has been seen as highly successful, which some believe qualifies him to lead the Labour Party and save many MPs from losing their seats in the next election, in two or three years' time.
But Mr Starmer has also clearly understood the threat, and by chairing the NEC panel, which voted by eight to one to deny Mr Burnham’s application to stand in the Garton and Denton by-election. Mr Burnham, who has expressed anger that he only heard about the NEC's decision through the media, said on Monday that he was “just getting on with my job now”.
To challenge a Labour leader, 20 per cent of the parliamentary Labour Party – about 80 MPs – need to openly disclose that they have no confidence in him. Mr Burnham, often referred to as the “King of the North”, was said to have up to 100 MPs in his camp. This is why Mr Starmer decided to accept the wrath of those on the left of the party and shut down the challenge.
“Andy is popular in that he's a charming, nice guy, and for what he has done in Manchester,” Mr Cruddas said. “There's also an awful lot of MPs worried about their own futures, and they think that Burnham is the only relatively popular Labour politician in Britain. But possibly the smarter move might have been to welcome him into parliament."
Decision derided
Foremost among those critical of the move was Louise Haigh, the former transport secretary, who called it “an incredibly disappointing decision” that Mr Starmer will “come to regret”.
The left-wing MP Richard Burgon also condemned the move, saying the Prime Minister “and his clique” were prepared to lose the by-election “just to protect narrow factional interests”. “It’s weak leadership – and will only deepen the crisis the party is in,” he added.
However, there was support from other MPs who put their backing behind what they feel is a swift and decisive move.
While Mr Starmer has been criticised at home for regular trips abroad – he is sometimes labelled “never here Keir” - he could potentially reinforce his position if the China visit opens up new economic opportunities for Britain’s struggling economy.
