Battle of the Makerfield Bye-Election Begins in Earnest

The upcoming Makerfield bye-election, scheduled for June 18, carries significant political weight, drawing parallels to the historic Battle of Waterloo. This date, the 211th anniversary of the famous battle, has been chosen for polling day, adding a layer of symbolic drama to the contest.

The primary reason for this bye-election is to pave the way for Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, to enter Parliament. His ambition is to challenge Keir Starmer for the leadership of the Labour Party, and by extension, the position of Prime Minister. The article frames Burnham as a potential "rising Prince" akin to the Duke of Wellington, or alternatively, a "Napoleon figure" whose ambitions might fall short.

Burnham's home territory, the Makerfield constituency, presents a complex electoral landscape. While he has historically performed well in the area, the constituency voted overwhelmingly in favor of Brexit, with a two-to-one majority. Furthermore, recent local elections saw Reform UK achieve a significant victory, securing 50.4% of the vote compared to Labour's 22.7%.

This demographic and electoral context has led some to pitch the Makerfield bye-election as a new "Battle for Europe." It is framed as a proxy referendum on Britain's future relationship with the European Union. Labour, under Keir Starmer, has softened its stance on Brexit, acknowledging economic damage and seeking closer ties with the EU. Starmer himself has emphasized his efforts to reset and improve relations with EU partners, aiming for a closer relationship that he believes benefits businesses and the country.

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What I've done in two years is to completely reset our relations with our EU partners, to really improve on that deal, which is what I did last year. This year we have another summit with the EU where we're going to take a really, really important leap forward in terms of the relationship. Bring us closer to Europe. It's really good for businesses, really good for the country. So that's what I intend to do, not get lost in a debate about what may happen years down the line. I'm grounded in the job that I'm doing, which is to make sure we are closer to the EU and doing the hard yards of making sure that we establish the relationship to make that work, get that relationship with the EU into a better place.