Bridget Phillipson describes herself as ‘a proud working-class woman’ in statement announcing her bid to replace Angela Rayner
Good morning. Yesterday around a dozen Labour MPs were being named as potential candidates for the deputy leadership, but it is mathematically impossible for more than four of them to get the required number of nominations and quite possible that only two or three will manage it. And, with hustings scheduled for tomorrow, any serious candidates are going to have to declare today.
This morning Bridget Phillipson has announced that she is standing. As a woman, who is not from London (she is MP for Houghton and Sunderland South) and a loyalist (she is education secretary), she has all the qualities mentioned by Harriet Harman yesterday as ideal for the next deputy leader.
Today I am putting myself forward as a candidate for the deputy leadership of the Labour party, to unite our great party and deliver for working people.
I am a proud working-class woman from the north-east. I have come from a single parent family on a tough council street, all the way to the cabinet, determined to deliver better life chances for young people growing up in our country.