Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey has said she is considering running to replace
Jeremy Corbyn as
Labour leader.
Long-Bailey was installed as favourite to replace Corbyn soon after the
election disaster, with the MP for Eccles likely to get support from the left of the party.
She had yet to confirm her ambitions but on Sunday night said she was “considering standing to be leader”
Long-Bailey also said she was supporting shadow education secretary Angela Rayner as deputy.
HuffPost
UK reported earlier this month that Rayner was poised to run for deputy and support Long-Bailey to succeed Corbyn.
It was one of the most significant developments in the race, with Rayner opting not to stand for the top job herself.
Writing in the Guardian, Long-Bailey said: “We can win again, but first our party must come together. We are strongest when we stand together as a pluralist Labour family.
“That is why I’m not only considering standing to be leader, but also supporting Angela Rayner as deputy.
“Leadership means leading a team, working with every part of our movement and using all our party’s talents to fight the Conservatives at every turn and map Labour’s route back to power.” There are many lessons to learn from our defeat, but we must not return to the politics of the past. We need a bold agenda that returns wealth and power to the people and delivers pride in our communities.https://t.co/K7A4JmM3aF— Rebecca Long-Bailey (@RLong_Bailey) December 29, 2019Earlier, Labour party chairman Ian Lavery was said to be “seriously considering” running to become the party’s new leader.
Lavery is a former general secretary of the National Union of Miners and is also seen as on the left of the party.
The contest to succeed Corbyn has yet to officially start but a number of other candidates are expected to declare in the coming weeks.
Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry and Clive Lewis, the shadow Treasury minister, have both declared they will run.
Shadow
Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer, Wigan MP Lisa Nandy and arch-Remainer and
Tottenham MP David Lammy have all expressed interest.Related... Ian Lavery 'Seriously Considering' Bid To Be Labour Leader Clive Lewis To Stand As Labour Leader And Promises 'Clear Break" With Blair-Brown Era Emily Thornberry Reveals She Will Stand In Labour Leadership Race Angela Rayner To Run For Deputy Labour Leader Job