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Sacked ex-Cabinet minister and left-wing favourite Lucy Powell is on the brink of becoming Labour's deputy leader in a fresh setback for Sir Keir Starmer. The former Leader of the House of Commons is expected to bag the senior position when the results of the contest are on Saturday. Polling suggested the Manchester Central MP enjoyed a healthy lead over her opponent Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson as voting closed on Thursday. It comes after Ms Powell lost her spot on the frontbench in the Prime Minister's reshuffle last month following former deputy leader Angela Rayner's resignation. During her election campaign, she frequently referred to 'mistakes' the party made on issues such as the winter fuel allowance. And in a final message to supporters this week, the MP appeared to criticise a 'command and control' culture within Government. She argued 'blindly following along' was 'a dereliction of our duty to defeat the politics of hate and division'. It means a victory for her would likely be seen as a rebuke to the PM from Labour members - many of whom believe the party is heading in the wrong direction. Sir Keir has already endured a difficult week, dominated by a row over the grooming gangs inquiry. Four women resigned from the probe's victims and survivors panel this week over concerns at how the government had handled the investigation so far. They all wrote open letters expressing similar fears around suggestions to widen the inquiry's scope beyond grooming gangs - thus watering it down, they claimed. The survivors also raised worries around the backgrounds of the two candidates proposed to chair the inquiry. Their respective backgrounds in policing and social work, two professions facing questions around trust in the inquiry, had set off alarm bells for them. Both candidates have now withdrawn from the appointment process. The PM's week was then capped with a defeat by Plaid Cymru in a Senedd by-election in the town of Caerphilly, near Cardiff, on Saturday. Sir Keir said he was 'deeply disappointed' by the loss: 'We clearly need to do much more.' The result saw a swing of 27 per cent from Labour, which has held the seat for a century. Labour's struggles in the polls have already led to some questions among backbenchers about Sir Keir's leadership of the party. Ms Powell has stressed she wants to 'help Keir and our Government to succeed'. But she also told supporters the party 'must change how we are doing things to turn things around'. Meanwhile, Ms Phillipson, seen as Number 10's preferred candidate for the deputy leadership, has stressed unity. She warned voting for her opponent would result in 'internal debate and divisions that leads us back to opposition'. Her supporters have warned the remaining contingent of supporters of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in the party are lining up behind Ms Powell. Luke Akehurst, the Durham MP, hit out on social media earlier this month after Momentum, the pressure group founded by supporters of Mr Corbyn, urged its backers to vote for Ms Powell. Momentum stopped short of a full endorsement of Ms Powell, but advocated a tactical vote after the move was supported by 74 per cent of members in a ballot. In a statement, the organisation said without a 'socialist candidate' on the slate, 'a victory for Powell is the best option to show the breadth of concern in the Labour Party and labour movement over the direction our Government is taking.' Mr Akehurst, who supports Ms Phillipson, took to social media platform X to say: 'I don't think Lucy shares their politics but the fact they see advantage in this outcome is something to bear in mind.' Ms Phillipson also has the backing of unions including GMB and Unison, as well as former home secretary Alan Johnson. Ms Powell, meanwhile, has the support of Lord Kinnock – who led the party from 1983 to 1992. She warned this week against 'trying to out-Reform Reform', referring to her party leader's new anti-migrant laws. The deputy leader candidate said Labour had to be 'much clearer about our purpose as a party and government, and whose side we are on'. 'I want to help Keir and our Government to succeed,' she said. 'But we all know that we must change how we are doing things to turn things around – more in touch with our movement, and the communities and workplaces we represent, more principled and strategic, less tactical, and strongly guided by our values.' She also hit out at Ms Phillipson, pointedly saying she would be a 'full-time' deputy leader, in contrast to her rival, who will combine it with her Cabinet post. If Ms Powell is named the winner on Saturday, it could trigger a fresh crisis and battle for the soul of the party just weeks before the Budget and at a time when it is struggling in the polls. The deputy leadership contest was triggered after Angela Rayner quit her roles as Deputy PM, Housing Secretary and deputy Labour leader last month. It came after she broke the ministerial code by failing to pay tens of thousands of pounds in tax on her £800,000 holiday home in Hove, Sussex. Her departure followed advice from the PM's ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus, who said Ms Rayner 'acted with integrity' but had breached the code. He concluded she did get legal advice when buying the property - but failed to seek the further expert tax advice recommended to her. In her resignation letter to Sir Keir, Ms Rayner said she accepted she 'did not meet the highest standards' during her purchase. 'I deeply regret my decision to not seek additional specialist tax advice given both my position as housing secretary and my complex family arrangements.' The former deputy PM said she took 'full responsibility for this error': "It was never my intention to do anything other than pay the right amount.
