Andy Burnham will likely receive a 'waiver' to contest the upcoming Makerfield by-election after it emerged Keir Starmer will not block the Manchester Mayor from returning to the Commons.
The self-styled 'King of the North' is tipped to stage a coup against the Prime Minister if he successfully returns to Westminster and a previous bid to stand in Gorton and Denton was rejected by Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC).
But NEC member Luke Akehurst told the BBC it is likely Mr Burnham will get his wish at the second attempt following the resignation by Josh Simons in Makerfield last night.
'I don't want to pre-judge [the NEC's] decision, but everything I'm hearing suggests they're going to give him a waiver to allow him to stand even though he's a metro mayor,' Mr Akehurst said.
Meanwhile one of Sir Keir Starmer's allies has admitted he is 'unpopular' as moves gather pace to replace him.
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07:33
Hello and welcome to the Daily Mail's live coverage of the Labour leadership saga following a day of high drama in Westminster.
Andy Burnham has been handed a route back to Westminster and is likely to receive a 'waiver' to contest a by-election after a previous attempt was blocked.
Wes Streeting's replacement James Murray starts his first day as Health Secretary following the former's resignation which plunged Sir Keir Starmer's premiership into crisis.
And questions have surfaced over Angela Rayner's claims she has been cleared by the taxman over a £40,000 bill.
Join us for the latest from Westminster as we bring you the latest updates.
Key Updates
Andy Burnham likely to receive 'waiver' to contest by-election