Six Labour MPs from across the party's ideological spectrum declared bids on Tuesday to become deputy leader — and, as is customary, the government's deputy prime minister — in a fast-tracked contest prompted by the departure of Angela Rayner.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson led the early standings, having secured the backing of 44 colleagues, followed by Lucy Powell on 35, Bell Ribeiro-Addy eight, Dame Emily Thornberry seven, Paula Barker three and Alison McGovern two. Candidates have until 5pm on Wednesday to reach the threshold of 80 MP nominations needed to progress to the next stage of the contest.
Party officials announced the nominations opening on Tuesday as part of a truncated timetable that critics inside Labour say benefits leadership favourites and limits debate. The campaign will hold a hustings for Labour MPs on Wednesday as contenders seek to secure the 80 nominations required to appear on the ballot for party members. The membership ballot, for those candidates who clear the parliamentary hurdle, will run from October 8 to noon on October 23, with the result due to be announced on October 25.
Phillipson, a long-time ally of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and a former union official, has been described by supporters as a candidate who can bridge the parliamentary party and the unions because of her working-class background and union ties. Some rivals, however, dismissed her candidacy as effectively a leadership-friendly choice, characterising her as a potential "nodding dog" deputy.
Powell, sacked from the government earlier this year, has been working to rebuild her standing inside the parliamentary party. She previously apologised after having dismissed public concern about grooming gangs as a "dog whistle" issue. A former chief of staff to Ed Miliband and ex-Commons leader, Powell also has organising experience from past national campaigns.
Dame Emily Thornberry, who chairs the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, said she would not simply "nod along" with Starmer on contentious matters and confirmed her support for a wealth tax. Thornberry has been criticised in the past as a "champagne socialist" and attracted public attention over a 2014 social media post mocking a home draped in England flags.
Bell Ribeiro-Addy, who declared first, represents the party's hard left and has called for measures including slavery reparations and higher wealth taxes. A long-standing critic of what she describes as Labour's "austerity approach," Ribeiro-Addy is also a prominent member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
Paula Barker, a backbencher who resigned a shadow brief to vote for an SNP motion calling for a Gaza ceasefire in 2023, said she entered the contest because of concerns about a lack of geographical and political diversity among the party's leadership. Alison McGovern, the only declared candidate from the party's right, is a Blairite who previously chaired Progress, a group associated with New Labour ideas.
The accelerated timetable for nominations and the requirement to gather 80 MP endorsements in a short window have prompted accusations from some Labour figures that the process is deliberately designed to limit competition. Party officials said the schedule was intended to fill the post quickly and restore stability to the frontbench.
If multiple candidates meet the parliamentary nomination threshold, Labour MPs will take part in a further internal selection process before the contest goes to the wider party membership in October. The winner will succeed Rayner in the deputy leadership role and is expected to assume responsibilities in government associated with the post.
The hustings for Labour MPs is scheduled for Wednesday, when candidates will make final appeals to colleagues ahead of the close of nominations. The outcome of the parliamentary stage will determine which names appear on the October membership ballot that will decide the party's new deputy leader.