Labour's Andy Burnham wins the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for him to challenge Keir Starmer as Labour Party leader
He won almost 25,000 votes, beating Reform UK's Robert Kenyon by more than 9,000 votes
"Everyone knows that politics isn't working," he says in his acceptance speech. "Tonight could, just could, be the turning point"
He also tells the Labour Party "this is a final chance to change... there will be no second chance" - here's a recap of his speech
Burnham previously said he would seek to enter any Labour leadership contest - he would need the support of at least 81 Labour MPs to join the race
This was a big win for Burnham, writes our political editor Chris Mason. We are in for a lively few days and weeks
Meanwhile, the Conservatives comfortably win the Aberdeen South by-election, while the SNP holds Arbroath and Broughty Ferry
We've just seen the prime minister's first reaction to Andy Burnham's big win.
"Congratulations, @AndyBurnhamGM, Labour’s new MP for Makerfield," he writes on X.
"Voters chose Labour’s campaign of hope and optimism over division and hate."
Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent
Image source, ReutersI’ve just arrived in Downing Street, where Sir Keir Starmer is waking up not only to an Andy Burnham victory in Makerfield – but victory by a massive margin.
It means the prime minister faces a threat to his position which is grave and imminent.
The message this morning from the jubilant Burnham camp, as expected, is that Starmer ought to come to his own realisation over the next few days that his position is untenable and set out a timetable for his departure.
That argument is bolstered, they believe, by the fact that Burnham won by such a distance.
"The scale of the result means the writing is on the wall and he needs to accept that," one senior Burnham-supporting MP has said to me.
But it has been clear for some time that Starmer intends to dig in. I’m told that remains his position this morning, and that we will hear as much from him today.
He will argue that he is closing the gap nationally with Reform UK, and that a leadership change would make Labour look like the Conservatives they defeated not even quite two years ago.
Assuming Starmer holds to that position over the weekend, that sets up an almighty clash with Burnham next week. The question will quickly turn to whether Labour MPs, and especially the cabinet, try to pressure Starmer out of office.
Charlotte Hall
Local Democracy Reporter, reporting from Wigan
The eyes of the nation were on Andy Burnham after the vote tallies for the Makerfield by-election were read out.
But as he approached the microphone to give his speech, he appeared to realise he had forgotten something - possibly his notes.
He could be seen patting his jacket pockets before suddenly turning on his heel to leave the stage.
Two independent candidates took the opportunity to issue impromptu protest speeches to the media scrum gathered in front of them.
The returning officer soon brought order to proceedings, stating the candidates had agreed prior to the announcement that only one person – the winner of the election – should hold an address.
Burnham then returned to the stage shortly afterwards.
Rachel Flynn
Live reporter
This we know for sure: Andy Burnham is the new MP for Makerfield
He won 55% of the vote - that's 9,000 more votes than Reform's Robert Kenyon. Burnham is no longer the Greater Manchester mayor - an election to replace him is expected to take place on 30 July.
He believes he is the change the Labour Party needs (if we read between the lines)
When Burnham told Labour Party members it was the "final chance to change", read between the lines - he was saying he could be the change the party needs, political correspondent Alex Forsyth writes.
So will Burnham be the next prime minister?
That's something we definitely don't know. Both Burnham and former health secretary Wes Streeting have said they would stand in any contest to replace the PM, and Streeting has suggested he would be prepared to trigger a leadership contest to replace him as early as next week.
But as of yet, no challenge to Starmer has been made. Contenders would need the support of at least 81 Labour MPs.
What is Starmer thinking?
Again, we don't know. We haven't heard a response to the by-election result from the prime minister. He previously warned Burnham against launching a leadership challenge if he won in Makerfield.
Did Burnham get his celebratory pint?
As the Makerfield MP left the count with his family, he got into a car he said he was going for a "pint". We have yet to see if he found anywhere open in the small hours of a Friday morning...
Faisal Islam
Economics editor
Andy Burnham consulted high-level advisers, especially on economics, in the days before his by-election win in Makerfield.
In a sign he is preparing programmes for national policy, and to communicate stability to the markets should he become prime minister, Burnham has been taking advice from Lord Jim O’Neill, a former Treasury minister and economist.
He has also been advised by the former chairman of the Office of Budget Responsibility, Richard Hughes, who resigned after an IT leak of Budget numbers.
Burnham is himself a former chief secretary to the Treasury, who took a close interest in reforming how government decides to give the green light for major infrastructure projects.
He has also floated reforming strict borrowing rules for example to allow for defence spending increases. He has since said that he would stick to the rules.
Image source, ReutersThe Makerfield by-election will not be the last election of the summer.
Now that Andy Burnham is an MP again he can not continue in his role as mayor of Greater Manchester.
That's because, in his current position, he is also the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Greater Manchester. You can't be both.
A 2011 act states that a person is "disqualified" from being a PCC upon becoming a member of the House of Commons.
A by-election to replace Burnham as mayor of Greater Manchester has to take place by 6 August - 35 days after the role was made vacant.
The authority's returning officer, Caroline Simpson, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service earlier this month that 30 July had been identified as the date which would allow the most number of people to vote.
Alex Forsyth
Political correspondent
Image source, ReutersWhen Andy Burnham told Labour party members it was the "final chance to change", read between the lines and he was saying he could be the change the party needs.
The question now is one of choreography: how the prime minister reacts to this victory, whether he decides to fight for his position, and what Burnham or other leadership hopefuls like Wes Streeting decide to do.
There will be plenty of conversations between Labour figures in the next few hours and days.
One thing that may change the calculations is the size of Burnham’s win - a decisive majority of more than 9,000 over Reform UK.
It adds weight to the argument of Burnham’s supporters that he is the only Labour figure that can beat Nigel Farage’s party - a powerful message among those weighing up what to do next.
Of course, there will be some in the Labour Party who point out that winning a by-election is one thing - and governing a country is quite another.
Image source, ReutersLisa Nandy attends the vote counting for the Makerfield by-election
Culture Secretary (and Wigan MP) Lisa Nandy has called Andy Burnham's by-election victory "history in the making".
“What Andy’s shown here is that there is something that he brings, a willingness to go out and fight for the change that people need, to take on any system and any person who stands in the way and to be bold and to wear his heart on his sleeve, and people have responded," she says.
Nandy adds that Labour will be in a really strong position with Burnham "back in the top team, at the top table, helping to drive that change".
Before the Makerfield by-election, Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned Andy Burnham against launching a leadership challenge, if he won in Makerfield.
Instead he said the Labour Party should focus on the election of a new Greater Manchester mayor.
Speaking from the G7 summit, the prime minister said a leadership contest would be a "bad thing" for the country and reiterated that he intended to fight any challenge.
The prime minister also indicated that he would offer Burnham a cabinet job if he wins in Makerfield, telling reporters: "I hope he wins the by-election and he'll play a big part in the Labour government."
Chris Mason
Political editor, reporting from the Makerfield count in Wigan
Image source, ReutersBurnham shaking hands with Reform UK's Robert Kenyon, who finished second
Andy Burnham couldn’t have hoped for a better result than this.
He’s won and won big time. Granted, this is a seat that has elected Labour MPs for yonks, but just a matter of weeks ago, at the local elections, Reform UK were dominant here.
So he can make an argument that in the tussle of our time in politics — between the incumbent party of government, Labour and the insurgent party Reform UK, he is a proven winner.
That is true here in Greater Manchester, where Burnham has a long track record of electoral success. How true would it be around the country?
This morning though, the focus will be on what the prime minister chooses to say. Expect to see him in front of the cameras before lunchtime.
There will also no doubt be a Burnham victory rally. Expect him to emphasise the local win here, rather than elaborate much further on his wider plans.
And how does the Labour Party respond to his win? Backbenchers, the cabinet? Is there a stepping up in calls for the prime minister to quit? We are in for a lively few days and weeks ahead.
Andrew Kerr
BBC Scotland political correspondent at the Aberdeen South count
Image source, PAThe win in Aberdeen - with a big majority - is a huge boost for the Scottish Conservatives who felt very sorry for themselves after the Holyrood election.
There has been plenty of cheering, hugging and even a little dance from a normally serious-looking party worker.
In his victory speech and "post-match" interviews, the winner Douglas Lumsden highlighted his main campaign message, which has been to fight for the future of the oil and gas industry.
There was no speech from the SNP's Richard Thomson. We grabbed him as he made his way off the stage.
He congratulated Lumsden and said there had been a significant amount of tactical voting, adding the "sheer amount of resources" put in by the Conservatives made it difficult to get the results they wanted.
Asked if the Peter Murrell affair - which the SNP has been battling with - had an effect on dampening party support, Thomson said: "I don't think it made a bit of a difference."
The BBC's election guru John Curtice says Andy Burnham's victory defies national and historic trends.
He points out that Burnham has increased Labour's vote share by nearly 10 percentage points despite parties in power usually losing ground in by-elections.
Curtice also notes that the Conservatives, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats got 3% of the vote between them.
The Question Time special on Makerfield was on 4 June
Now he is an MP, Andy Burnham can seek to challenge Keir Starmer as Labour leader.
"I can't do anything unless I'm lucky enough to get the support of people here," he said during a Question Time special before the by-election.
"But if I get your support, I would seek to represent you at the highest possible level and give this constituency maximum power and influence...
"If that [a leadership contest] is running, I would seek to join it, but I would have to persuade members of the Parliamentary Labour Party."
Watch the clip above.
Image source, PA MediaAs we reported earlier, Andy Burnham left the count with his family after his acceptance speech.
The PA news agency reports that as he got into a car with his his wife and daughter, he said he was going for a "pint".
Image source, ReutersAndy Burnham gave an impassioned speech as he addressed his victory in the Makerfield by-election. Here are the key moments:
Andy Burnham's victory speech after Makerfield win
Makerfield's brand new MP, Andy Burnham, has left the building in Wigan with his daughter and wife.
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty ImagesBurnham says the result "made a loud cry for change". Addressing his own party, he says: "This is a final chance to change."
"There will be no second chance," he says, adding there is an opportunity now to build a "new politics based on unity and hope".
Expressing sadness that his victory brings an end to his tenure as Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham says England's north-south divide cannot be closed "without big change at national level".
"I always knew that one day I would seek to go back to Westminster to complete that unfinished business so that Makerfield and Greater Manchester, and the north of England, can fulfil their potential," he says.
Image source, PA MediaBurnham says that from here on he will give everything he has got to make sure Makerfield "is forever synonymous with bringing about the change this country needs".
He adds that he is proud that the electorate has shone in the world's spotlight over the past five weeks and its people's hospitality has been on show for all to see.
"It will never be a stepping stone to me but instead will be my touch stone. A Makerfield test at the heart of British politics will ensure the places Westminster has neglected will now get fairness," he says.
Image source, PA MediaThe newly-elected Makerfield MP, Andy Burnham, begins his speech by thanking those who have worked on the election, and his fellow candidates for a "civil debate".
"Everyone knows that politics isn't working, everyone can feel that the country isn't where it should be," he says.
"Tonight could, just could, be the turning point," he adds.
Andy Burnham has won with 24,927 votes, beating Reform's Robert Kenyon by more than 9,000 votes.
