Bev Craig selected as Labour candidate for Greater Manchester mayor

Manchester City Council leader Bev Craig has been selected as Labour’s candidate for the Greater Manchester mayoral by-election.

Craig, who has led Manchester City Council since 2021 and serves on the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, had been widely regarded as the frontrunner to succeed Andy Burnham, following his resignation from the role after being elected MP for Makerfield.

In a statement following her selection, Craig said she would build on Labour’s record in Greater Manchester while focusing on economic growth, housing and opportunity across the city-region. Labour sources said her campaign would seek to continue the devolution agenda established under Burnham’s mayoralty.

The by-election was triggered after Burnham stepped down as mayor upon becoming MP for Makerfield.

Voters are expected to go to the polls on 30 July to choose Greater Manchester’s next mayor.

Craig will enter the contest as the candidate of a party that has held the mayoralty since the office was created, with Labour hoping to retain one of its highest-profile regional posts.

However, she is expected to face stiff competition from both the Green Party and Reform UK.

The election will be the first to be held under the supplementary voting system after the Labour government reversed a Tory decision to implement first-past-the-post for mayoral elections.

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In a statement Craig said: “Greater Manchester is a special place – from the industrial revolution, the trade union and cooperative movements and the suffragettes – this place has always fought for progress.

“This place changed my life and I owe it everything, it gave me opportunities I could never have imagined, and I’ve spent my career trying to give something back.

“While Westminster left places like ours behind, Greater Manchester has taken control of our own future and we’ve started building our own success.

“Working alongside former mayor Andy Burnham, we have achieved so much over the (years) – bringing buses back under public control, creating jobs, attracting investment, and pushing Greater Manchester forward as a real powerhouse of the North West.

“But for too many people, who work hard and do the right thing, life still feels too hard and unaffordable.

“As mayor I will apply a simple test: will it make life better?”

“I will work every day for us to make sure everyone shares in the success Greater Manchester is building – making sure there’s more money in people’s pockets, pride in every town centre with a New High Streets Fund, a new generation of council and affordable homes and an expanded Bee Network that freezes fares and that works for all of us.

“That’s why I’m standing to be mayor – to build a Greater Manchester that works for everyone.”

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