One of Andy Burnham’s closest allies has launched a damning attack on Sir Keir Starmer on the eve of Labour’s conference, accusing the prime minister of overseeing “rot” in the Labour Party.
Former donor Sacha Lord said it is the first of the party’s annual gatherings he will miss since joining in 2022, accusing Sir Keir of having abandoned Labour’s values.
He lashed out at “poor decisions being made from the top” and warned hundreds of Labour councillors stand to lose their jobs in May as a result.
Mr Lord was Greater Manchester’s night time economy adviser under Mr Burnham for seven years until January and his intervention comes amid mounting speculation the so-called King in the North is plotting a bid to oust Sir Keir.
He has repeatedly entertained rumours he is gunning for the Labour top job amid one of Sir Keir’s toughest spells since the general election. And last week Mr Burnham refused to rule out stepping down as mayor early to return to Westminster and challenge Sir Keir.
Mr Burnham has long been a favourite to succeed Sir Keir and is a strong ally of Lucy Powell, who is favourite to win Labour’s deputy leadership contest. He also has the support of culture secretary Lisa Nandy as well as other cabinet ministers.
It is understood Mr Lord, who founded the Parklife festival and runs Manchester’s Warehouse Project nightclub, would return as a donor to Labour if Sir Keir was replaced as leader.
Speaking to The Independent before Labour’s conference kicks off in Liverpool this weekend, Mr Lord said: “Since joining the Labour Party, this will be the first conference that I’ll be missing.
“I joined on the back of several meetings with the then Shadow Cabinet, who promised me a vision as the party of both business and growth.
“This was then reiterated at their manifesto launch in 2024.”
He said it “simply has not been the case”, attacking Rachel Reeves’ “disastrous” 2024 Budget. He said it was a nightmare for pubs, restaurants, hotels and bars and has resulted in a slew of closures and more than 110,000 job losses.
Mr Lord said: “I don’t have faith in the current leadership, which has recently shown a lack of both judgement and loyalty.
“The cabinet is now again far too London centric, having promised more power to the regions, which now seems just shallow words.
“It’s apparent the current Chancellor has no interest in Hospitality, the UK’s 5th biggest sector. Her national insurance increase was both reckless and short sighted.
“Sadly, I predict that many good, hard-working Labour councillors will lose their jobs in May, purely from poor decisions being made from the top.
“Decisions that to me, don’t represent Labour Party values.
“A fish rots from the head.”
The scathing attack comes amid a torrid time for the PM, who has this month lost his deputy prime minister Angela Rayner after she resigned amid a tax scandal. He was also forced to sack Lord Mandelson as ambassador to the US in an embarrassing U-turn just 24 hours after defending him at PMQs in a row over his close friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Labour is currently 14 points behind Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the polls, on just 18 per cent, almost half the party’s rating at the general election last year.
Sir Keir is hoping to turn the page at the party’s conference, rallying activists and MPs behind a “patriotic call for national renewal”.
But he will likely face further challenges from disgruntled MPs over his handling of the economy, his stance on Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and his refusal to scrap the two-child benefit cap.
A Labour Spokesperson said: “After 14 years of Conservative decline, including Liz Truss’ disastrous mini budget, Britain’s economy was on its knees. That’s why the Labour Government took emergency action to stabilise our economy and fix the foundations that rotted away under the Tories.
“With Keir Starmer’s leadership, wages are finally rising faster than prices, interest rates have been cut five times and we’ve secured three major trade deals. And since Labour came into power, more than half a million people have moved into employment.
“We’re turning the page on years of decline and are focused on putting more money in working people’s pockets.”
