'It's over Keir': Labour grandee Alan Johnson calls on PM to go as he claims only Andy Burnham can 'restore trust'

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Alan Johnson, who served as Health Secretary under Gordon Brown between 2007 and 2009, said Andy Burnham was the "only person" who can "restore trust" in politics.

Speaking exclusively on Tonight with Andrew Marr about last night's by-election, the Labour grandee said he had "never known a moment like this...that was a constituency high up on Reform’s list and in one leap you’ve got Andy Burnham not just winning, but winning well."

It comes after Mr Burnham secured a 9,231 majority and a 54.8 per cent share of the vote in the Makerfield by-election, piling mounting pressure on a beleaguered PM whose future now hangs in the balance.

Asked what advice he would give the PM, whose future is more perilous than ever as allies of Mr Burnham call for him to step aside, Mr Johnson told Marr: '"I would say it is over Keir. And listen, he is a bright guy, he knows it is over."

Read more: The clock is ticking: Burnham allies give Starmer 72 hours to stand down or face full-blown coup

Read more: Andy Burnham sets his sights on Downing Street after seismic victory in Makerfield by-election

He went on to praise Starmer's 2024 electoral victory as "an incredible achievement...And he is a fighter but this is just stark reality and we’ve got a chance now to do things for whatever reason Keir was unable to do."

The Labour heavyweight continued he was certain Mr Burnham would win any leadership contest. "Reality number one, Andy Burnham is going to stand for the leadership, reality number two, he is going to win."

Mr Johnson also said the incoming MP would need "go to the country" and call a general election this year after becoming leader - something Mr Burnham previously ruled out.

He said: "There is no bad thing to having a coronation, you don’t have an internal fight, particularly when you’re trying to run the country at the same time, but Andy should go to the country. I’m not saying straight away but he should seek his own mandate.

"He is the one person who can restore trust in politics… Now after what happened with the Tories, four Prime Ministers in a fortnight, the public will not stand for that. And if you’re going to restore trust in politics, and Andy probably is uniquely placed to do it, he has to say at some stage, I’m going to seek my own mandate because the mandate he has at the moment is the mandate gifted to him by Keir Starmer."

Mr Johnson continued he believed a general election should be held "this year", and compared the current situation to Gordon's Brown's failure to call a snap election after he took over from Tony Blair.

"If you think back the precedent for this - and it is not exactly the same, of course not - is when Gordon took over from Tony and we were 16 points ahead in the polls.

"And people thought this is something very different with Gordon and there was a period in which if he had gone to the country he would have won a mandate and he was about the same period in, given that this isn’t going to happen for a couple months… I think Gordon has always regretted not going to the country and I think Andy - who was there with me at the time as Chief Secretary to the Treasury - should bear that in mind."

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to fight any potential leadership challenge if a contest is triggered, telling reporters he won’t simply “walk away”.

But pressure is mounting on the PM, with allies of the newly-elected Makerfield MP reportedly giving him a 72 hour ultimatum to stand down as PM to avoid a full-blown coup.

Earlier today, former Transport Secretary Louise Haigh, a close ally of Mr Burnham, called on the PM to take the weekend "to really reflect on the result here – listen to soundings from the cabinet and the PLP (Parliamentary Labour Party), because all the evidence suggests that a contest will be brutal, it will be unpleasant and it will be very unlikely that the Prime Minister is going to win at the end of it."

Asked if Team Burnham had a "campaign ready to go", she replied "yes", adding: "We really hope that this can be a managed and orderly transition and Keir Starmer will reflect on the results, and Andy and Keir can meet in the coming days, and over the next week, and agree a path forward."

Sir Keir will reportedly take the weekend to mull over his decision despite publicly vowing not to “walk away”, The Times reports.

But ministers are set to tell Sir Keir his “time is up” and urge him to set out a timeline for an “orderly transition” of power.

Several have already confirmed they will tell the PM to quit to make way for Mr Burham, who said Labour had a “final chance to change” after his decisive win in Makerfield set up a showdown with the PM.