Darren Jones MP is being urged not to enter a Labour leadership contest against Andy Burnham, as cabinet ministers loyal to Keir Starmer said they would not back any candidate facing him. Jones, the MP for Bristol North West and the chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, was understood to be reluctant to run.
Some MPs had been encouraging him to stand to avoid a coronation for Burnham, but the numbers inside the party were already working against that effort. One MP said support for Jones was barely in double figures, while most MPs believed he had no chance of reaching the 81 MPs needed to enter the contest.
Starmer loyalists back Burnham
Douglas Alexander and Nick Thomas-Symonds had already got behind Burnham, narrowing the space for any rival candidacy. One minister said it would be “crackers” to have a contest at this stage and said they had urged Jones not to run in any contest where he would be unlikely to win.
That left Jones caught between encouragement from some MPs and resistance from ministers aligned with Starmer. The prospect of a challenge was being discussed as a way to stop Burnham from entering the race without opposition, but the parliamentary arithmetic pointed in the other direction.
Darren Jones and 81 MPs
Last Friday, MPs began organising for a potential run for Jones in case Starmer resigned. By the time of this report, the effort had become tied to a stricter hurdle: 81 MPs’ support to get into the contest. One MP backing Jones said he had both economic and national security experience, national rather than regional appeal, and continuity in areas Labour had taken to voters in 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2019.
Supporters of Jones also pointed to the risk of Ed Miliband becoming chancellor under Burnham. One supporter said, “Ed as chancellor would be a disaster.” Burnham has not made a final decision on that role, but he has been considering it, and sources said he was aware of the potential risks, with business and unions opposed to the move.
Andy Burnham policies
Jones was expected to look at Burnham’s economic plans, including public control of utilities, before deciding whether to run. Burnham is also understood to be planning a series of speeches to set out his policies, including on the economy, and has stressed that he will stick to Rachel Reeves’s fiscal rules on spending and debt.
The immediate question is whether Jones decides to move from preparation to a formal run. If he stays out, Burnham’s path looks far less contested; if he enters, he still has to clear the 81-MP threshold before the race can begin.
