By Sophie Wingate

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Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has called for a “wholesale change” to see off an “existential” threat to Labour, in comments likely to be seen as a pitch for a future leadership bid.

He criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s approach, saying the “challenge we’ve got in front of us cannot be met by a very factional and quite divisive running of the Labour Party”.

Mr Burnham set out his vision for a “plan to turn the country around” in an interview for the cover of the New Statesman which could fuel speculation that he could seek a return to Westminster to unseat the Prime Minister.

Sir Keir has had a bruising few weeks in which two high-profile departures from Government and persistent lag behind Reform in the polls sparked questions about his leadership.

Mr Burnham insisted he is not plotting an immediate return to the Commons or wanting to step on the Government’s toes as it seeks a reset at the Labour Party conference.

But the senior Labour politician told the news magazine that the gathering in Liverpool starting on Sunday must answer the question “where is our plan to turn the country around?”

“I’m going to put the question back to people at Labour conference: are we up for that wholesale change?

“Because I think that’s what the country needs,” he said.

“If you’re asking me, am I attracted to going back into my old world and the old way of doing things in Westminster with minimal change, well no, I wouldn’t find that attractive.

“([But) am I ready to work with anybody who wants to sort of put in place a plan to turn the country around?

“I’m happy to play any role. I am ready to play any role in that. Yes. Because the threat we’re facing is increasingly an existential one.”

He continued: “Politics BAU, business as usual, Westminster politics, ain’t gonna do it.

“The plan has to change quite radically.”

Detailing his politics of “aspirational socialism,” Mr Burnham called for more public control of housing, energy, water and rail, and to “get back to speaking to working-class ambition”.

Arguing for electoral reform in Westminster and for parties to work together on a long-term economic agenda, he indicated a willingness to work with the Liberal Democrats and Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Burnham said it would be a “wrench” to leave his current role and life in Greater Manchester and expressed frustration at reporting framing him as spending “every waking minute of my life thinking about how I, you know, take over and that’s just not true”.

But he declined to rule out a tilt at the top job as he set out his vision for change.

“It’s the plan that matters most, rather than me,” he said.

“Can we agree on a plan to turn this country around by retaking control of those essentials and being bold about it, and then helping to reduce the cost of living for people and helping control public spending as a result?”

A Labour source said: “I’ve heard of a stalking horse, but this guy is going to get hoarse from his endless stalking.”

The Mayor of Greater Manchester has thrown his weight behind former Commons leader Lucy Powell in the race to succeed Angela Rayner as Labour deputy leader following Mr Rayner’s departure over her tax affairs.

He believes Ms Powell’s victory would be key to weakening Downing Street’s grip on the party, according to The New Statesman.

Ms Powell has also been boosted by a £15,000 donation from green energy industrialist Dale Vince, who said: “I believe it’s right to go all the way and have a deputy leader that is not in the Government and thus less constrained by collective responsibility.”

Ms Powell has cast herself as the “independent choice” in the contest against Cabinet minister Bridget Phillipson.

But Education Secretary Ms Phillipson on Wednesday rejected claims she is No 10’s choice, suggesting instead she had been the victim of sexist briefings.

She was asked whether she would welcome Mr Burnham, who was a Labour MP from 2001 until he quit Westminster in 2017, into the Commons as a potential leadership rival to the Prime Minister.

“Well, there isn’t a vacancy so I’m not sure which job he’d be applying for,” she told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“He’s got a big job on his hands there in Manchester.”