MP rejects rumour he could stand aside for Burnham
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Claire Hamilton
BBC Merseyside political reporter
BBC
Peter Dowd has represented Bootle since he was elected in 2015
A Merseyside MP has rejected reports suggesting he would stand down to make way for Andy Burnham to return to Parliament.
Peter Dowd, who has represented Bootle since 2015, said speculation he would step aside for the Greater Manchester mayor was "unfounded" and his intention to remain as the constituency's MP was "absolutely unequivocal".
Speculation about a possible path back to Westminster for Burnham has been swirling for months - amid suggestions he could mount a leadership challenge to Sr Keir Starmer.
However, he was blocked by Labour's ruling committee from standing as the party's candidate in the recent Gorton and Denton by election.
Several veteran MPs have been mentioned as likely candidates to retire and create a vacancy for the former cabinet minister, but Dowd said it was "tittle tattle" that he wanted to "put to bed".
"I was elected to represent and serve the people of the Bootle constituency at the last election and intend to continue doing so," he told
BBC Radio Merseyside
.
Andy Burnham has previously said rumours MPs are being pressured to step aside are "fiction"
He added speculation about Sr Keir's leadership and constant rumours about who might replace him "distracts and detracts" from the job Labour MPs were trying to do.
"We just need to end the speculation, and certainly in my case, I've ended it," he said.
Bootle has long been regarded as Labour's safest seat and in 2024 handed the party its biggest majority.
The speculation around Burnham's link with the constituency is tied to him being born in Aintree, which is in the neighbouring constituency of Walton.
Last month, Burnham told
BBC Radio Manchester
that suggestions St Helens South MP Marie Rimmer was being pressured to "step aside" were "fiction".
Some reports had claimed Rimmer was being pressed by Burnham's supporters to step down in return for a seat in the House of Lords.
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