The Green candidate, Hannah Spencer, overturned a 13,000 Labour majority to win the Gorton and Denton seat

Keir Starmer is facing an ultimatum from his own party to change direction or see a leadership challenge within months after the Greens humiliated Labour with a historic byelection victory in Gorton and Denton.

Overturning a 13,000 Labour majority from the general election, Hannah Spencer, a local plumber and Green councillor, became the party’s fifth MP on Friday. Reform UK’s Matt Goodwin was second, just ahead of the Labour candidate, Angeliki Stogia.