Rosie Duffield has said she is “having chats” about a possible return to Labour under Andy Burnham.
Speaking to GB News, the Independent MP said any future Labour leader hoping for her backing would need to keep moving towards the “mainstream” on gender issues.
Duffield left Labour last year after a lengthy dispute over gender ideology within the party.
While she described Burnham as “the only possible saviour” for Labour, she made clear she still has concerns over his previous stance on transgender self-identification.
Back in 2019, Burnham was among several Labour figures who signed a letter urging the Conservative government to introduce legal self-identification for gender, saying it would “transform the lives of trans people”.
But his position appeared to soften after the UK Supreme Court’s ruling on gender under the Equality Act last year.
The former Manchester mayor said the ruling should be implemented in a way that protects single-sex spaces without marginalising already vulnerable communities.
“Of course I’m not going to support someone whose views on gender are so different from mine and from the majority of people,” Duffield said.
Asked whether she believed Burnham still thinks “trans women are women”, she replied: “I hope not. I don’t think so.”
“We’re in the same corridor at work at the moment, and we’ve had a few chats. I’ll keep talking to him and see where things go,” she said.
“I think, like a lot of people on the left, he’s moved a bit more towards the mainstream.
“He understands what’s at stake for women now, and I think he supports the Supreme Court ruling. But we’ll see. The jury’s still out.”
When asked if she would rejoin Labour under a Burnham-led government, Duffield said she was keeping her options open.
“I’m definitely thinking about it. We’re having chats. I’m not rushing into anything — I want to see how things develop,” she said.
“I think Andy is the only real hope for Labour’s future, so for now, I’m keeping my options open.”
Duffield also criticised Labour MPs who quickly switched support to Burnham after his by-election victory.
She accused them of hypocrisy, saying many backed Sir Keir Starmer until the very end before suddenly changing sides in pursuit of Cabinet positions.
“The public can see it, and it’s ridiculous, isn’t it? It’s so hypocritical,” she said.
She added that colleagues had privately laughed at ministers scrambling to align themselves with Burnham.
“A lot of people are lining themselves up for the top jobs, and that’s how they think they’ll get there.”
