Former Home Secretary Rt Hon David Blunkett MP has issued the following statement regarding the Labour leadership contest.
Mr Blunkett said: “I’m very pleased indeed that both David Miliband and Andy Burnham have addressed this weekend's Progress conference and that they are addressing the same challenges for the future, rather than getting embroiled in distancing themselves from our recent past.
“It is absolutely crucial that we fight the next election and the one after that - not re-fight the 2005 and 2010 elections, which is always a danger in contests of this sort.
“I'm also extremely keen that there should be the widest possible field and that this should include candidates with a vision of the future like David and Andy.
“That's why I've indicated that I'm prepared to nominate Andy Burnham, to widen the field and to provide a genuine debate which reflects the different elements not just of the Labour Party but, more crucially, of the electorate on which we will be reliant for a return to office.
“Contrary to some interpretations of my stance, I am deeply committed to working out how we can get people who would count themselves as middle-class (as well as those who would describe themselves as working-class) back on board with Labour. It is among such voters that the next election will be won or lost.”
ENDS
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