‘This is your last chance to change,’ Burnham said in his victory speech.

Labour’s Andy Burnham has won the Makersfield by-election, paving the way to challenge Sir Keir Starmer as Labor leader.

“Everybody knows that politics doesn’t work,” he said in his acceptance speech. “Tonight, it could be a turning point.”

Burnham has previously said he would like to enter any Labor leadership contest – he would need the support of at least 81 Labor MPs to join the race.

The newly elected MP for Makersfield, who held cabinet posts under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, said he always knew he wanted to return to Westminster to “finish the unfinished business” so the north of England could fulfill its “potential”.