By James Holt

Copyright manchestereveningnews

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has insisted he will ‘lead from the front’ into the next general election amid mounting speculation about the future of his premiership. Sir Keir said ‘we can and we will’ change the country, in an apparent slap-down of his potential future leadership challenger Andy Burnham , following the Greater Manchester mayor’s calls for ‘wholesale change’ in national politics. And he equally appeared to take aim at the mayor, telling BBC North West that he wouldn’t comment on Burnham’s ‘personal ambitions’, but compared the his argument that the government should borrow more to fund spending to that of former PM Liz Truss. Sign up to the MEN Politics newsletter Due North here It comes after Burnham refused to rule out a tilt for the Prime Minister’s job if he won enough backing, following a series of headline-grabbing interventions which have been widely seen as a pitch for a future leadership bid. However he equally insisted he is ‘completely committed’ to Greater Manchester after his repeated hints drew a mixed reaction within the party. Burnham had earlier claimed MPs have urged him to challenge Sir Keir Starmer – as he set out a vision to ‘turn the country around’. The former Leigh MP accused Downing Street of creating a ‘climate of fear’ and said ‘wholesale change’ was required to see off an ‘existential’ threat to the ruling party. Without referring to the Greater Manchester mayor directly, Sir Keir pushed back against suggestions he was not going far enough in his plans to reshape the country. Speaking to regional broadcasters before the party’s annual conference in Liverpool this weekend, Sir Keir said his political project was a ’10-year’ endeavour and defended the Government’s record a year into office in a series of interviews. Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE The Labour leader branded the Conservative Party ‘basically dead’, while urging ‘reasonable, tolerant, decent’ voters to reject the ‘politics of grievance’ promoted by Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. He told ITV Anglia he had defied those who doubted he could change the Labour Party , adding: “They said, you can’t win an election in 2024 – I said yes we can, and we did with a landslide victory. “Now people (who) are saying to me you can’t change the country (are) getting the same answer. We can and we will.” Asked whether he was to blame for a sense among some that Labour was a sinking ship, Sir Keir told ITV Meridian: “Let me take a different view, because in the first year of a Labour Government, we’ve delivered five million extra NHS appointments. “We had an ambition for two million. We’ve done five million. We just rolled out childcare. This is from nine months to four years: very good for parents and carers who can get back to work.” And then asked whether he could guarantee he would lead the ruling party into the next general election, Sir Keir said: “Yes. I’ve been very clear that this is a project of national renewal – patriotic national renewal – I was clear about that when we launched the campaign, as we did last year. “I’m very clear that that is a 10-year project. I led from the front into the last election, I’ll lead from the front into the next election.” — Day in day out, our reporters in the Manchester Evening News newsroom bring you remarkable stories from all aspects of Mancunian life. However, with the pace of life these days, the frenetic news agenda and social media algorithms, you might not be getting a chance to read it. That’s why every week our Features and Perspectives editor Rob Williams brings you Unmissable , highlighting the best of what we do – bringing it to you directly from us. Make sure you don’t miss out, and see what else we have to offer, by clicking here and signing up for MEN Daily News. And be sure to join our politics writer Jo Timan every Sunday for his essential commentary on what matters most to you in Greater Manchester each week in our newsletter Due North. You can also sign up for that here. You can also get all your favourite content from the Manchester Evening News on WhatsApp. Click here to see everything we offer, including everything from breaking news to Coronation Street . If you prefer reading our stories on your phone, consider downloading the Manchester Evening News app here, and our news desk will make sure every time an essential story breaks, you’ll be the first to hear about it. And finally, if there is a story you think our journalists should be looking into, we want to hear from you. Email us on newsdesk@men-news.co.uk or give us a ring on 0161 211 2920.