Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee is due to meet on Monday to draw up the timetable and rules for a deputy leadership election to replace Angela Rayner, who resigned last week after an inquiry found she had underpaid £40,000 in stamp duty.
The meeting comes as the contest threatens to become a major battle over the party’s direction and internal management, with the NEC considering whether to revisit the eligibility and voting rules used in previous deputy leadership elections in an effort to speed up the process. In prior contests, Labour members, affiliated trade unions and parliamentary party members have all had roles in choosing the deputy leader.
One high-profile senior figure, Foreign Affairs Committee chairwoman Dame Emily Thornberry, said over the weekend she was thinking about launching a bid. Labour’s Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said the contest was an opportunity for a “discussion about the internal management” of the party and warned that the Cabinet now lacked “balance” following Rayner’s departure.
Rayner’s resignation, prompted by an investigation that concluded she had breached the ministerial code after admitting to underpaying stamp duty on a new home earlier this year, prompted a wide-ranging government reshuffle. Sir Keir Starmer replaced Rayner as deputy prime minister with David Lammy and appointed Steve Reed to the housing department. The reshuffle also moved Yvette Cooper to foreign secretary and Shabana Mahmood to home secretary, while Rachel Reeves remained chancellor — marking the first time the U.K. has three women in the most senior cabinet roles alongside the prime minister.
Rayner had served as both deputy Labour leader and deputy prime minister and was regarded by many within the party as a bridge between the government and backbenchers. Her departure has left a vacancy that party figures say could see a contest between those who want to shape the party’s policy direction and those focused on internal management and regional representation.
Burnham suggested that a candidate from the north of England could provide another voice for that part of the country and cited former transport secretary Louise Haigh and former Commons leader Lucy Powell as potential contenders to help counter what he described as the “London-centricity” under Sir Keir’s leadership.
The NEC’s discussions are expected to cover how quickly the contest can be run and whether modifications to the franchise or timetable are necessary to reflect the compressed political timeline. Any changes proposed by the NEC would determine how much influence grassroots members, trade unions and MPs would have in selecting a new deputy leader.
Party officials and senior parliamentarians say the result could affect the balance of power inside Labour at a sensitive moment, ahead of a party conference likely to be dominated by manoeuvring for the vacancy. Rayner was widely popular with the grassroots, and her role in connecting ministers to backbench concerns was seen as stabilising within the parliamentary party.
The NEC meeting follows several days of rapid personnel changes at the top of government as Sir Keir sought to draw a line under the scandal triggered by Rayner’s admission. Labour sources said the timetable set by the NEC will be central to how quickly the leadership contest proceeds and how it is perceived by party members and the public.
Further announcements on candidacies and the detailed timetable were expected after the NEC’s Monday meeting. Labour officials did not immediately provide a date for when nominations would open or close, and it remained unclear whether the NEC would opt for a longer contest to allow broader participation or a shortened one to resolve the vacancy quickly.