Sir Keir Starmer is facing a fresh crisis after Labour‘s devastating defeat in the Gorton and Denton by-election. Labour was pushed into third place behind the victorious Greens and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the traditionally safe Greater Manchester seat.

The humiliating loss will pile more pressure on the embattled Prime Minister after he was almost forced out of No 10 over the Lord Mandelson scandal. Left-wing Labour MP Richard Burgon insisted the blame “lies squarely with Keir Starmer and his clique”.

Mr Burgon, the secretary of the Socialist Campaign Group of backbench Labour MP, hit out at the blocking of Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham from standing and demanded more left-wing policies such as a wealth tax.

Labour MP Karl Turner said the loss was “catastrophic” and “couldn’t be any worse”.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Well it’s catastrophic, isn’t it? I mean, that’s the truth. It couldn’t be any worse.

“Having the Greens in Manchester is the worst result we could have expected or we wanted, frankly.

“But you know, the reality is, Burnham was blocked. He shouldn’t have been, in my view.”

Mr Turned blamed “unpopular” policies and the Gaza row for Labour coming third in the crunch ballot.

Labour’s deputy leader Lucy Powell admitted the Greens had won the “argument that they were best placed” to keep Reform out of Gorton and Denton.

She insisted “there is no leadership contest” and that Sir Keir “is resolute in his job as leader of the Labour Party, as our Prime Minister”.