‘Hold the line’: Burnham tells allies in parliament he still has options to return
Andy Burnham has told Labour MPs they should hold the line and that he has options to return to parliament after several seats identified by his allies failed to materialise,Two seats that backers of the Greater Manchester mayor had described as “nailed on” as recently as Monday night are now out of contention after the MPs concerned got cold feet,Burnham spoke to a number of MPs by phone on Tuesday and assured them that he still intended to seek an imminent return to parliament,The Guardian was told by two MPs on Wednesday that Jeff Smith, who represents Manchester Withington, an affluent suburb of the city, was in talks about stepping aside for Burnham, but his friends denied it,Asked whether he was about to make way, Smith told the Press Association he was not.
Afzal Khan, the MP for Manchester Rusholme, also attempted to play down speculation that his seat was in contention, saying voters had chosen him to represent them “and that is the job I am focused on doing.”However, members of Khan’s local Labour party said they believed he was preparing to stand aside for Burnham.Asked whether this was the case, Khan told the Press Association: “I am not.”Jim McMahon, who represents Oldham West, did not respond to inquiries about his seat, but he is known to be close to the former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, another possible contender for the Labour leadership.There are some in the Burnham camp who have reservations about the seat because of the likelihood of a well-funded Reform campaign there, and especially a focus on the town’s dark legacy of grooming gangs.
Burnham’s allies had previously been confident they had potential seats for him in Warrington North and St Helens South and Whiston, but the MPs for these constituencies, Charlotte Nichols and Marie Rimmer, deny that was the case,“I don’t know how many different ways I can say this, but I’m not stepping aside for Andy Burnham,” Nichols said on Wednesday,“It’s both very tedious for me and very demoralising for my staff to keep seeing it reported that I might be about to go when there’s never even been so much as a conversation with Andy about doing so,”One Burnham ally said: “We thought the local election results would concentrate some people’s minds [but] until you’ve got something lined up, you haven’t,There’s been a couple of near misses but it’s difficult because it depends how colleagues feel [about their own political future].
We were hopeful something might come up and it hasn’t,”Another MP, a key Burnham supporter, put it bluntly: “They’ve fucked it,Everything is falling apart, they’ve run out of time,”A third pro-Burnham source said it looked as if any leadership race would move too fast for the mayor, with Wes Streeting expected to start an accelerated process this week,“It’s a big shit cocktail.
We’re all doomed,” they said,Burnham is understood to have had conversations with union leaders, but one member of Labour’s national executive committee said that in order to win over some he would have to distance himself from elements of the energy policies promoted by Ed Miliband, because the GMB and others were pushing for a change in position,They said Burnham had been very far from having a majority on the committee the last time he attempted to run, but another source on the committee said that if Starmer’s political authority was shot Burnham would have a chance,“Everyone on there is a pragmatist,” they said,Burnham has been the preferred candidate for many MPs on the party’s soft left, including influential figures such as the former ministers Louise Haigh and Miatta Fahnbulleh, as well as more centrist MPs such as the former minister Josh Simons.
But the group is likely to split significantly should Streeting launch a challenge and Burnham be unable to return in time,Should Starmer decide to run against Streeting – and an alternative candidate from the left – the prime minister would have a major advantage because of Labour’s voting system, which is preferential,MPs say they are deeply concerned that because Starmer would be likely to collect most second preferences, in a three-way contest he could even come second and still remain leader and prime minister,Many told the Guardian they were split between backing Miliband or Rayner, or keeping Starmer in place to buy Burnham more time,“Ed has got no hope with the unions, he has no path,” one senior MP said.
“Lots of us might nominate him for want of anything and then sit it out.The Tribune group is split, massively.”Another MP who backs Burnham said: “Andy’s best hope now is to do a deal with Keir – give him some time, let him build a legacy on Iran and Ukraine, finish the bills he cares about and have a transition that allows Andy to return.I think there are some in No 10 that are open to that, in theory, if the polls look as bad as they are.But they are worried, of course, about losing even more political authority if that comes out.
”
Stephen Colbert on Trump’s 22ft gold statue at his golf club: ‘recreational idolatry’
On Monday night, Stephen Colbert gathered his “best television friends” Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver on the couch after a monologue which focused on the war in the Middle East, Donald Trump’s latest slew of AI images and Sean Duffy’s return to reality TV.On The Late Show, Colbert discussed reports that the US president sent Iran a one-page memo last week outlining his peace plan. “I’m told we have a copy,” he joked, before flashing up a handwritten note in the style of a school kid’s love letter, which read: “Will you go to peace with me? Yes or no.”Over the weekend, Iran responded to Trump’s proposal with a list of demands that included reparations for the war and full control over the strait of Hormuz. Tehran also said that it as willing to suspend development of its nuclear program but for a shorter time than the 20 years requested by Trump
One in seven in UK prefer consulting AI chatbots to seeing doctor, study finds
One in seven people are using AI chatbots for health advice instead of seeing their GP, a UK study has found.The poll of more than 2,000 people found that – of the 15% turning to chatbots – one in four had done so because of long NHS waiting lists.The study analysed by researchers at King’s College London revealed the potential risks of using AI for health advice. A fifth of respondents who did so said the technology did not encourage them to seek a professional opinion and a similar proportion said they decided against seeking a consultation because of something an AI chatbot had told them.The research is the first to quantify the use of AI chatbots for health advice, according to the researchers, and signals how the technology is changing the way people are dealing with health problems
US Senate confirms Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair, replacing Jerome Powell
The US Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as chair of the Federal Reserve, one of the most powerful roles in the federal government that holds enormous sway over the economy.The 54-45 Senate vote on Wednesday was split along party lines, with the exception of the Democratic senator John Fetterman from Pennsylvania, who joined the Republican majority. It was most divisive confirmation vote for the position in history.Warsh was confirmed for a four-year term as chair and a 14-year appointment on the Fed’s rate-setting board.Warsh will officially step into the role on 14 May, when the term of outgoing Fed chair, Jerome Powell, ends
Sam Altman defends OpenAI in courtroom showdown with Elon Musk
The OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman, took the stand on Tuesday to defend himself and his company against a lawsuit by Elon Musk. Altman is set to be one of the final witnesses in the trial, which has pitted two of the tech industry’s most powerful men against each other in a dramatic courtroom showdown.Musk has accused Altman and OpenAI of breaking the AI firm’s founding agreement by restructuring it into a for-profit enterprise, alleging that Altman essentially swindled him into co-founding the company and providing tens of millions in financial backing. Musk also claims Altman unjustly enriched himself in the process and is seeking the CEO’s removal from OpenAI, the redistribution of $134bn to the firm’s non-profit and the undoing of its for-profit conversion.OpenAI and Altman have rejected all of Musk’s claims, arguing that he is motivated by jealousy after a failed bid to take over the AI firm in 2018 and a subsequent departure from its board
Florida students boo graduation speaker who called AI ‘next Industrial Revolution’
Though college graduations usually consist of a speaker giving advice to students, one recent ceremony featured students giving the speaker their opinions – loudly.The University of Central Florida’s 2026 graduating class booed as a real estate development executive spoke about how “the rise of artificial intelligence is the next Industrial Revolution” and about “living in a time of profound change”.The crowd of students was so loud that Gloria Caulfield paused, turned away from the podium and threw her hands up in the air.“Woop, what happened?” she asked, before letting out a nervous laugh: “OK, I struck a chord. May I finish?”As the crowd calmed down, Caulfield proceeded
Jim Furyk tells US players they need to make Ryder Cup more of a priority
Jim Furyk has admitted the United States need to make the Ryder Cup more of a priority as the 56-year-old plots a reversal of fortunes at Adare Manor in September 2027.Speaking expansively for the first time since being handed the US captaincy for a second time, Furyk pointed towards an overhaul of approach to the biennial event. He also suggested he will be keen to involve Tiger Woods on his backroom team.Victory for Europe at Bethpage last year means the US have won two of the past eight Ryder Cup stagings. The PGA of America wanted Woods to assume the captaincy for Adare, a scenario that was subject to delay before it was rendered impossible by the 15-time major winner’s Florida car crash in March
Joseph Fiennes on parenting, politics and banning children from social media: ‘Stand up, Keir, this is your kids’ generation’
From The Sheep Detectives to Rivals: your complete entertainment guide to the week ahead
Historic Oxford cinema under threat as Oriel College refuses to extend lease
Arthur Miller opens up about marriage to Marilyn Monroe in newly unearthed recordings
Man charged over bomb hoax after Peter Kay show evacuated
Royal Opera House calls for release of Georgian bass singer jailed over democracy protests