Andy Burnham wins Makerfield by-election, paving way for him to challenge Keir Starmer as Labour leader [View all]

[StevieM]

Source: BBC

Burnham 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.

Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c3928mlyle8t