‘Let’s see what he can do’: will Burnham bring Barnsley voters back to Labour?

The Guardian UK Friday 14 August 2026, 13:13 UTC By Hannah Al-Othman North of England Correspondent 1 min read

Key Points

Reform UK overturned the ‘red wall’ in May, but with questions over Farage’s finances and a new face in No 10, could Barnsley be a bellwether for changing Labour fortunes?Labour marked its worst performance in more than 50 years when voters went to the polls in Barnsley in May, but 100 days on from those seismic local elections, the political landscape has shifted drastically. Could the South Yorkshire town, where Reform UK reaped the benefits of dissatisfaction with Labour, prove to be a...

Reform UK overturned the ‘red wall’ in May, but with questions over Farage’s finances and a new face in No 10, could Barnsley be a bellwether for changing Labour fortunes?

Labour marked its worst performance in more than 50 years when voters went to the polls in Barnsley in May, but 100 days on from those seismic local elections, the political landscape has shifted drastically.

Could the South Yorkshire town, where Reform UK reaped the benefits of dissatisfaction with Labour, prove to be a test case for whether the governing party has turned the tide?

Burnham (PERSON) Barnsley (LOCATION) Labour (ORG) UK (LOCATION) Farage (PERSON) No 10 (EVENT) South Yorkshire (LOCATION)

Originally published by The Guardian UK Read original →

‘Let’s see what he can do’: will Burnham bring Barnsley voters back to Labour?

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