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Why the Makerfield by-election could bring down Starmer · DEEP INSIGHT

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  Speaker 1: The people living in this quiet corner of England could
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  Speaker 1: play a big role in who becomes the UK's next
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  Speaker 1: Prime ministeros absolute So how did we end up here
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  Speaker 1: and could the plan actually end up backfiring? This is
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  Speaker 1: Makerfield in northwest England is holding a by election and
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  Speaker 1: the stakes couldn't be higher. It's a former mining area
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  Speaker 1: and since the constituency was created in the eighties it's
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  Speaker 1: only ever had a Labour MP in this by election.
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  Speaker 1: There are fourteen candidates overall, and parties including Labor Reform, Conservatives, Libdem's,
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  Speaker 1: Greens and Restore Britain are all canvasing, but the two
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  Speaker 1: main front runners are Labour's Andy Burnham and Reforms Rob Kenyan,
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  Speaker 1: and if Burnham wins, it could potentially open up his
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  Speaker 1: roots to Downing Street. Keep saying bi election, but if
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  Speaker 1: you're not one hundred percent sure how they work, just
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  Speaker 1: sit with me for a sec. So a by election
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  Speaker 1: is a one off vote that happens if an MPC
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  Speaker 1: becomes available in between general elections. It could because the
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  Speaker 1: MPs stepped down, been recalled or even died for example.
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  Speaker 1: They happened fairly often, but we've never seen one like
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  Speaker 1: this before. So the vote here on June the eighteenth
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  Speaker 1: is to replace Labor MP Josh Simons, who stood down
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  Speaker 1: from his seat last month as part of a bigger
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  Speaker 1: plan which could go wrong. But we'll get to dynam inte.
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  Speaker 1: I think people are excited mainly about national issues such
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  Speaker 1: as immigration. I think that's what's getting everybody fired off.
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  Speaker 2: Anyone who's running for it. They've all got the wrong
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  Speaker 2: gender from what I think, so you know how to
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  Speaker 2: advance the career. So I don't really trust it any
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  Speaker 2: even big, big divide between people. This is a lot
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  Speaker 2: of people going around, a lot of signage going around.
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  Speaker 1: Kirs Darmer is under serious pressure from his own Labor
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  Speaker 1: MPs after big election losses in Wales, Scotland and England
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  Speaker 1: in May this year, and there's questions over his appointment
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  Speaker 1: of Lord Mandleson and how much he knew about his
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  Speaker 1: relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Some in his party just think
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  Speaker 1: it'll be better for Labour's chances in the next general
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  Speaker 1: election if somebody else was in charge. One of the
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  Speaker 1: favorites for that role is Andy Burnham, but he isn't
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  Speaker 1: an MP because he currently serves as the mayor of
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  Speaker 1: Greater Manchester and that's what brings us here. For Burnham
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  Speaker 1: to be in with a chance of being Prime Minister,
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  Speaker 1: he'd have to have a seat in Parliament, but there
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  Speaker 1: were none going until now. Enter stage left Labor and
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  Speaker 1: p Josh Simons, who basically took one for the team,
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  Speaker 1: gave up his seat here in Makefield, Andy Burnam could run.
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  Speaker 1: So what do we need to know about the two
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  Speaker 1: front runners? Andy Burnham is one of the most recognizable
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  Speaker 1: figures in the Labor Party, a former cabinet minister under
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  Speaker 1: both Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, and for the last
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  Speaker 1: eight years he's been there of Greater Manchester. He's made
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  Speaker 1: no secret of his ambitions to be Prime minister too.
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  Speaker 1: His main competition here is Rob Kenyan, who has a
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  Speaker 1: very different background, a self employed plumber born in Makerfield,
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  Speaker 1: who doesn't have a long history in politics. Right, let's
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  Speaker 1: see if we can get anyone here to talk to
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  Speaker 1: us about what it's been like. Hello, can we ask
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  Speaker 1: you a couple of good questions?
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  Speaker 2: I can ask you some very quick.
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  Speaker 1: Questions about the area, no worries. Could I ask you
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  Speaker 1: some quick questions about the area. Are you aware of
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  Speaker 1: the upcoming election? Yeah? Aren't we all?
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  Speaker 2: Does it affects us?
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  Speaker 1: All? Of course, it affects us. The all political landscapes
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  Speaker 1: got to change. It's not about right or left, or
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  Speaker 1: it's about what's right and wrong. What has it been
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  Speaker 1: like recently since this by election was announced? Chaos?
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  Speaker 2: Chaos absolutely may have the national focus has been on
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  Speaker 2: us for a while now to go announced, what.
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  Speaker 1: Honest set, Not a lot of gimmicks.
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  Speaker 2: I just want tell us what you can and can't do,
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  Speaker 2: but don't tell promises things that you're not going to deliver.
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  Speaker 1: Not many people want to talk to us. They seem
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  Speaker 1: pretty sick of media attention already. But ironically we met
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  Speaker 1: a guy who's traveled all the way from Europe to
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  Speaker 1: report on this by election.
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  Speaker 2: You're at the BBC.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I've heard the BBC. So you're a Norwegian reporter?
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  Speaker 2: Yes, i am, I am, and I'm here to follow
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  Speaker 2: the by election. This is a global story.
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  Speaker 1: I met with a Japanese team down the roads. But
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  Speaker 1: why are the stake so high? Well, Andy Burnham is
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  Speaker 1: not just competing for this one seat. He's basically fighting
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  Speaker 1: to prove that he's a guy who can help labor
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  Speaker 1: beat reform, and that could backfire. Reform of gained big
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  Speaker 1: momentum in places like Makeerfield recently and taking votes off
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  Speaker 1: of Labor and the Conservatives. They've gone support on things
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  Speaker 1: like immigration, cost of living and distrust in politics, so
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  Speaker 1: make Afield is a risky place for Labor to run.
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  Speaker 1: In the last general election in twenty twenty four, this
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  Speaker 1: was how the constituency voted just over forty five percent
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  Speaker 1: Labor and thirty one point eight percent for Reform. That's
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  Speaker 1: pretty tight, but it might be exactly the gamble Labour
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  Speaker 1: want to take.
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  Speaker 2: This constituency has been a safe Labour seat for decades
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  Speaker 2: and it's in a part of the country, the northwest
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  Speaker 2: of England, that has traditionally been a bit of a
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  Speaker 2: Labour heartland. Is also the sort of constituency that Nigel
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  Speaker 2: Faraj's party needs to win if he is to become
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  Speaker 2: the next Prime Minister. For Andy Burnham, the Labour candidate
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  Speaker 2: a mayor of Greater Manchester. This is also a big
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  Speaker 2: opportunity to prove he has a way to beat reform
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  Speaker 2: because the challenge that Nigel Faraja's party poses the Labor
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  Speaker 2: Party is one of their biggest challenges looking ahead to
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  Speaker 2: the next general election. This whole contest is intensely awkward
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  Speaker 2: for Kis Starmer because it could end with him being
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  Speaker 2: challenged as leader of the Labor Party. It means that yes,
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  Speaker 2: Labour are backing Andy Burnham as their candidate, but him
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  Speaker 2: running for this election could end up with their leader
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  Speaker 2: Kiirstarmer being challenged at the end of it.
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  Speaker 1: We'll be back here next week once the election results
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  Speaker 1: are in to explain what happens next, what it means
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  Speaker 1: for Makefield and for the rest of the UK. But
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  Speaker 1: first subscribe so you don't miss all the election like content.
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: Here's a full list of candidates who are running.