ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE’S MP has called for sweeping change within Labour following devastating local election results.
For the first time in 47 years, Tameside Council is not controlled by Angela Rayner’s party.
The former Deputy Prime Minister described the results as a “historic defeat” after voters headed to the polls on Thursday, May 7.
Her comments came after a seismic night, which saw Reform UK win 18 of the 19 contested seats in Tameside, leaving the authority under no overall control.
Among the shocks were gains by the party led by Nigel Farage in traditional Labour strongholds including Denton, Hyde, Droylsden, Dukinfield and Mossley, with them only holding on in St Peter’s.
In a lengthy social media statement, Rayner admitted: “What we are doing isn’t working, and it needs to change. This may be our last chance.”
The senior Labour figure said the cost-of-living crisis had dominated conversations on doorsteps across communities like Ashton and the north, warning many working people no longer felt Labour represented them.
She added: “We are in danger of becoming a party of the well-off, not working people.”
Rayner also criticised decisions including cuts to the winter fuel allowance and referenced the “Peter Mandelson scandal”, saying it contributed to perceptions of “a toxic culture of cronyism”.
The election upheaval follows a turbulent political period in Tameside, which included the high-profile resignation of former Gorton and Denton MP Andrew Gwynne earlier this year following the so-called “Trigger Me Timbers” WhatsApp scandal, which also saw a number of councillors suspended.
Rayner argued Labour now needed to urgently refocus on issues affecting everyday residents, including wages, affordable housing, public transport, renters’ rights and regenerating local high streets.
She also pushed for greater devolution powers and renewed support for public ownership, while suggesting Labour should reconsider previous internal decisions, adding: “Blocking Andy Burnham was a mistake.”
Concluding her remarks, she said: “Labour exists to make working people better off. That is not happening fast enough, and it needs to change – now.”