Why is Andy Burnham such a threat to Keir Starmer? Everyone likes him | Zoe Williams

"Some people call Andy Burnham Labour's prince across the water and others call him the King of the North. Those are two pretty different symbolisms the first referring to James Francis Edward Stuart, the exiled son of James II, the second referring to Robb Stark, and later Jon Snow, from Game of Thrones. Everyone on Team Starmer will be sticking with the Stuarts, since that whole saga was defined by fakery and flakery."

"The rebel's basic checklist is as follows: they need an absolutely minute knowledge of the party's rulebook, yet at the same time, an understanding that the rule-based order is over. Item one in Labour lore used to be that, unlike the Conservatives, they found it more or less impossible to change the leader until he'd lost an election. If that was true even in opposition which is where they normally are it was so much truer while they were actually governing that it's never really"

Andy Burnham is framed through contrasting symbols: the Stuart heir associated with fakery and the honourable fictional Starks. Stuart symbolism evokes rumours of imposture and convenient succession, while Stark symbolism evokes honour, bravery and legitimacy. Traditional routes to power such as commanding fealty and raising troops are largely irrelevant to modern Labour pretenders. Challengers must retain tiny, precise knowledge of party rules while acknowledging that formal rule-based order has weakened. Labour lore historically made leader removal almost impossible until electoral defeat, and governing made that constraint even stronger, leaving other rules, like NEC powers, underexamined. Recent rumours about a Burnham parliamentary bid prompted speculation about NEC interventions and shortlist demands.

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