Red Wall Group Backs Northern Woman For Deputy Labour Leadership
3 min read
The Red Wall Group of Labour MPs has called for a northern woman to be the party's new deputy leader.
The caucus, led by Labour MP Jo White, on Wednesday held a hustings for the candidates hoping to replace Angela Rayner, who resigned last week after being found to have breached the ministerial code over unpaid stamp duty.
In a statement today, the group, which is comprised of MPs representing northern and Midlands seats, said it would not collectively endorse a specific candidate.
However, it said the next Labour deputy leader should be a "northern woman who has the ability and capacity to act as a strong voice for our areas".
White, MP for Bassetlaw, plans to endorse Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, while former Commons leader Lucy Powell received support from most MPs in the room, PoliticsHome understands. Both are northern women, with Phillipson representing a seat in the northeast and Powell coming from Manchester.
Phillipson has comfortably surpassed the 80 MP nominations she needs to make progress in the contest, with figures published on Wednesday night putting her on 116. Powell is on 77, meaning she is very likely to also hit the threshold.
Labour left backbencher Ribeiro-Addy, who told PoliticsHome she didn't expect to make it to the next stage, is on 15. Liverpool MP and fellow left-wing bencher Paula Barker is on 14, and Foreign Affairs Committee chair Emily Thornberry is on 13.
Earlier on Wednesday, minister Alison McGovern said that she was withdrawing from the race, saying in a statement that "the momentum of this contest has shifted".
The Red Wall Group statement said: "We agreed that the next Deputy leader should live and breathe the values of our constituents in left behind places like ours.
"This is essential for a Labour government to meet the challenges that it will face at the next general election.
"The Red Wall Group of Labour MPs therefore strongly believe our next Deputy leader should be a northern woman who has the ability and capacity to act as a strong voice for our areas."
Candidates must secure 80 nominations from Labour MPs by Thursday at 5pm to continue in the election.
To secure a place on the ballot paper, those running will also need to be nominated in the second stage of the contest by either five per cent of local parties or three affiliates, including two trade unions.
If there is still more than one candidate in the running after the first two stages, ending Saturday 27 September, the names will then be put to members in a preferential ballot. The result will be announced on Saturday 25 October.
