Liam Byrne sees off left-wing rivals to become Labour candidate for West Midlands mayor
2 min read
Former Labour minister Liam Byrne has seen off his two left-wing rivals to become the party's candidate for West Midlands mayor.
Mr Byrne, who served under Tony Blair, beat the Unite union and Momentum-backed Salma Yaqoob into third place and will now go toe-to-toe with the current Conservative mayor Andy Street later this year.
Pete Lowe, a Dudley councillor and former Stourbridge Parliamentary candidate who had earned the backing of unions including Unison, BFAWU and the FBU, came second.
In a statement, Labour said: "Liam Byrne has been selected by members in the West Midlands as our candidate for metro mayor.
"We look forward to campaigning with Liam and his team to deliver a Labour victory on May 7th."
Mr Byrne - who also served as Chief Secretary to the Treasury under Gordon Brown - clinched the nomination after second preferences were taken into account.
In the first round, Mr Byrne received 3105 first preference votes, Pete Lowe received 2034 and Salma Yaqoob received 1809.
After second preferences were distributed, Mr Byrne beat Mr Lowe by 56.5% to 43.5%.
The result will be seen as a blow to the party's left as it picks its next leader and deputy leader.
Ms Yaqoob's bid for the nomination had sparked controversy among some Labour MPs and campaigners, who pointed to her stint as an election candidate for George Galloway's Respect Party, during which time she twice stood against Labour.
Labour MP Naz Shah said Ms Yaqoob's campaign against her when she stood against her in Bradford West "drove me to feeling suicidal", while LGBT+ Labour called on party boses to "revisit" a decision to shortlist her as a candidate afer she backed a protest against same-sex education in primary schools in Birmingham.
Mr Byrne has vowed to lead a "radical mission to change our region for good" if he beats Mr Street - who snatched the mayoralty from Labour in 2017 - in May's vote.
Responding to his pick as candidate, Mr Byrne said: "I'm so proud that members from across our region and our party have united behind our campaign for West Midlands Mayor. Now, the real campaign begins."
The MP said he would now campaign to "make the West Midlands the workshop of a green planet" by pushing for it to become "Britain's first zero cartbon city region".
And he vowed to work to "end the shame of homelessness" with a "green home building revolution".
Mr Byne added: "We don't have time to waste. Our region simply cannot afford a Tory Mayor who fails to deliver. And that’s what we have today."
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