Andy Burnham [R] is widely seen as the favourite to succeed outgoing PM Keir Starmer [R] [Getty]
Andy Burnham must make a “clean and decisive break” with the policies of outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer if he is to win back Labour’s lost Muslim supporters, the founder of The Muslim Vote said in an interview with The New Arab on Wednesday.
Abubakr Nanabawa, who founded the group in late 2023 amid widespread disaffection within his community, said that the newly elected MP, who hopes to take over from Starmer, must forge a new direction on Palestine and the cost-of-living crisis.
“There has to be a very clear and decisive break from the politics of Kier Starmer,” Nanabawa said. “An immediate arms embargo on Israel and suspensions of trade, goods and services from illegally occupied West Bank settlements.”
Nanabawa added that should Burnham become leader, he must reverse the curbs on civil liberties undertaken by Starmer in response to anti-genocide protests.
“It’s the swiftest and easiest break he can make from Starmerism. If he can do that, there is a chance of Muslim voters returning to the Labour Party,” Nanabawa says.
Broken trust
In their ascendancy, some within Starmer’s Labour party may have scoffed at demands made by their once loyal constituency of Muslim voters, but recent elections show that many British Muslims have had enough.
The Muslim Vote was itself founded in the opening months of Israel’s war on Gaza, when both the ruling Conservatives and Starmer’s Labour opposition were repeatedly emphasising Israel’s alleged right to “self defence” as it killed thousands of Palestinians. It was also around this time that Starmer said on LBC Radio that Israel “had the right” to deprive Palestinian civilians of water and electricity.
The comments sparked backlash from both the public and within the Labour Party, with several Muslim councillors announcing their resignations. To make matters worse, an unnamed Labour source later allegedly responded to the resignations by telling Jewish News editor Lee Harpin that the party was “shaking off the fleas” – remarks that many Muslim voters have not forgotten.
The warning signs appeared during the 2024 general election, when Starmer won a huge majority in Parliament amid record-low voter turnout. Away from the jubilation, Labour lost at least three seats to pro-Palestine independent MPs in constituencies with sizeable Muslim communities.
Nanabawa says that the fracture between the Labour Party and Muslim voters is not a simple fix.
“There won’t be a rush back even if a Burnham government changes policies. This is a process of rebuilding trust,” Nanabawa said.
“We did work in the by-election in Manchester Gorton and Denton where Green candidate Hannah Spencer won, and we also reengaged with people during the local elections in May. We saw in densely populated Muslim areas, Greens and independents did well. In some cases, Labour got completely wiped out,” he adds, referring to the disastrous polls for Labour which spelled the beginning of the end for Starmer’s premiership.
‘Put Britain first’
Nanabawa says that the issues raised by his group are not only the concerns of Britain’s Muslims, but reflect the broader interests of the country.
“Muslim voters have the same concerns as any other citizens; they care about the nhs, about investment in public services. But I can’t trust a government that facilitates genocide to take care of ordinary people” he says.
A poll conducted by Opinium in the aftermath of the local elections showed that 53% of Labour’s 2024 general election voters abandoned the party in the council votes over the government’s support for Israel.
“It’s very important that British people and people around the world do not suffer from ever rising bills, an issue caused in part by Israel’s decision to continue dropping bombs and blowing up the ceasefire, which has led to the repeated closure of the Strait of Hormuz,” he adds.
No stepping aside
Another casualty of the May local elections appears the political dominance of the two major parties, with Labour and the Conservatives facing challenges from the left and right.
This has led some to accuse independents and smaller parties of vote splitting in the face of the threat posed by Nigel Farage’s far-right Reform UK, which won more than 1,450 council seats in the May elections.
However, Nanabawa insists that the onus is on Labour to prove itself deserving of votes.
“Simply saying were not Reform is not good enough. We’ve seen in America with Kamala Harris that people will not vote for people who vote for genocide,” he says.
“No one owes the Labour Party their vote, they need to earn people’s votes, and earn people’s trust.”
