Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson reaches next round of Labour deputy leadership race

Bridget Phillipson has made it to the next round of Labour's deputy leadership contest after storming ahead with 116 nomination of the party's MPs.

The education secretary is followed by former Commons Leader Lucy Powell who has 77 votes - just shy of the 80 required to make it onto the ballot paper.

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The remaining three candidates were further adrift, with left-wing MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy on 15 nominations, Liverpool Wavertree MP Paula Barker on 14 and Foreign Affairs Committee chairwoman Dame Emily Thornberry on 13.

The tally from the Parliamentary Labour Party came after housing minister Alison McGovern dropped out of the race, conceding she would not get the support required.

The candidates need 80 nominations by 5pm Thursday.

There are still over 100 MPs left to vote, with an online hustings being held tonight to give undecided MPs a chance to ask questions of the contenders.

Earlier on Wednesday, Ms McGovern said it was "clear that the momentum of this contest had shifted and I am not going to progress to the next stage".

Throwing her weight behind Ms Phillipson she added: "I am pulling out of the race now to allow my supporters to switch their nominations to one of the remaining candidates before the deadline.

"I want to thank everyone who has offered me support and encouragement in this race. I will be nominating my friend and colleague Bridget Phillipson as the candidate best placed to unite our party and take the fight to our opponents."

The race was triggered by the resignation of former deputy prime minister and housing secretary Angela Rayner after she admitted underpaying stamp duty on a flat she bought in Hove.

Ms McGovern was coming last according to a tally released by the PLP last night, when she had just two nominations compared to Ms Phillipson's 44.

The MP for Birkenhead was rumoured to be Number 10's preferred choice before it was clear Ms Phillipson would enter the race.

As government ministers both were seen as candidates that would be loyal to Sir Keir Starmer, though Ms Phillipson is the more senior of the two as she holds a cabinet position, whereas Ms McGovern is a junior minister.

Many Labour MPs are keen to see someone who would work constructively with the prime minister to avoid the party becoming more divided.

However others want someone who will challenge Sir Keir to be bolder as Labour languishes behind Reform UK in the polls.

Ms Powell, the MP for Manchester Central, was part of the government until last week, when she was sacked in Sir Keir's reshuffle.

Ms Ribeiro-Addy, Ms Barker and Dame Emily have all criticised the government on issues like welfare, gaza and wealth taxes.

Some of their supporters, and the candidates themselves, have criticised what they see as an unusually high threshold to make it to the next round, given the winner will ultimately be decided by party members.

If more than one candidate secures 80 nominations by Thursday evening, they will then need to gain backing from either three of Labour's affiliate organisations, including two trade unions, or 5% of constituency parties.

That process will continue until 27 September, meaning a contested election threatens to overshadow the party's annual conference that begins in Liverpool the next day.

The successful candidates will then appear on the ballot for a vote of all party members and affiliated party supporters, which will open on 8 October and close on 23 October at 12pm.

The winner will be announced on Saturday 25 October.

(c) Sky News 2025: Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson reaches next round of Labour deputy leadership race