Richard Burgon is the Labour Party MP for Leeds East, having first been elected to parliament at the 2015 general election.

In the 2024 general election, Burgon received 18,610 votes in Leeds East, representing 47.2% of the vote share. The Reform UK candidate, David Dresser, received 7,345 votes (18.6%), while the Conservative candidate, Sam Firth, secured 6,898 votes (17.5%). Burgon was duly elected with a majority of 11,265 votes.

The Leeds East constituency covers eastern parts of the City of Leeds, including areas such as Cross Gates, Gipton, Harehills, and Seacroft. It is considered a safe Labour seat, held by the party continuously since 1906, and was formerly represented by Denis Healey.

Political Career

On 23 July 2024, Burgon had the Labour whip withdrawn and was suspended from the parliamentary party for six months after voting for an Scottish National Party (SNP) amendment to the king’s speech calling on the new Labour government to scrap the two-child benefit cap.

Burgon included, seven Labour MPs were suspended from the parliamentary party for supporting the SNP amendment – namely Zarah Sultana, John McDonnell, Ipsana Begum, Imran Hussain, Ian Byrne and Rebecca Long-Bailey.

In February 2025, the whip was restored to four of those suspended MPs – Burgon, as well as Hussain, Byrne and Long-Bailey. However, Begum, Sultana and McDonnell remained as independent MPs because they had continued to be critical of the government, reports and briefings indicated. In September 2025, the whip was restored to Begum and McDonnell.

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Burgon served in the shadow cabinet under Jeremy Corbyn as shadow secretary of state for justice and shadow lord chancellor from June 2016 to April 2020. Prior to that, he was shadow economic secretary to the Treasury (city minister) from September 2015 to June 2016.

Burgon stood unsuccessfully for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party in 2020, finishing third with 21.3% of the vote behind Rosena Allin-Khan (26.1%) and Angela Rayner, who secured 52.6% in the final round of voting.

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Burgon announced his candidacy in an article for Tribune, published late 2019, which urged Labour MPs and members to “learn the right lessons” after the party’s devastating defeat in the recent general election.

Burgon wrote: “Of course, Jeremy came up on the doorstep. But this is the fourth Leader I’ve campaigned for and each time – whether it was Tony Blair and Iraq, Gordon Brown, Ed Miliband or Jeremy – the Leader always came up.

“Nobody campaigned with greater energy, resilience and principle than Jeremy and all of us in the shadow cabinet need to accept responsibility.”

He added: “In rebuilding, Labour must be the champion of the whole working-class: whether in towns and cities, whether remain or leave, and ensure we are a party that reflects the diversity of the working-class in 21st century multicultural Britain. Nostalgia has no role to play in making Labour successful again.”

Andrew Sparrow, a journalist at the Guardian, said Burgon’s article offered “one of the fuller versions available of what has become the standard Corbynite analysis of Labour’s election defeat.”

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During the Labour deputy leadership election of 2020, Burgon suggested the party should print a free “tabloid-style” newspaper to bypass traditional media.

Speaking to Novara Media, Burgon said: “Something I’d like to see, it might seem like an old-fashioned idea, but obviously in London there is the Evening Standard that everyone reads on the Tube and on the bus.

“And in other parts of the country there is the Metro, every time you go to work in Leeds or wherever you’ve got everyone reading the Metro because it’s there.

“It would be fantastic if the labour movement could invest in its own free newspaper given out on public transport, because that is when people will read it.”

Burgon was ultimately dismissed from the shadow cabinet when Keir Starmer became Labour leader in April 2020.

Burgon served on the justice select committee in 2015 and again from 2020 to 2021.

He has introduced several private members’ bills (PMBs), including attempts to ban MPs from holding paid second jobs, and from receiving benefits from oil and gas companies, and proposals for a climate finance fund.

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Burgon has campaigned to ban MPs from holding second jobs. Introducing a bill to this effect in 2021, the MP commented: “Being an MP is a very well-paid, full-time job. But too many MPs just don’t treat it like that. Instead, they treat it as an opportunity to chase corporate cash through lucrative second jobs.

“It’s time to put an end to this racket. That’s exactly what my bill would do, by banning MPs from having paid second jobs. If the government is actually serious about ending the rot in our politics, they should back my bill.”

An anti-austerity campaigner, Burgon has supported protests organised by the People’s Assembly Against Austerity. In 2015, he tabled EDM which argued that the then-Conservative government’s economic strategy had “seen a significant transfer of wealth from the least well-off to the more affluent” and “contributed to increased inequality and impoverishment in society.”

Burgon delivered his maiden speech on 10 June 2015 during a debate on housing.

In it, he said: “In politics, in life and in the economy, I believe that fulfilment of potential only comes when, in the words of the Leeds United song, we are ‘Marching On Together’.

“There is such a thing as society and there is such a thing as community. I am proud of the society and community I come from and I look forward to standing up for the people of East Leeds in this House in the years ahead.”

Burgon is an avowed republican. Before taking the mandatory oath of allegiance to the queen upon entering parliament in 2015, he stated his belief that the head of state should be elected. “As someone that believes that the head of state should be elected I make this oath in order to serve my constituents”, he said.

In 2011, Burgon tied for the Labour nomination for the Barnsley Central by-election. He ultimately lost the selection to Dan Jarvis.

Political Views

Leadership elections and loyalty

Starmer stand down: In May 2026, Burgon publicly called for Keir Starmer, the prime minister, to step down/set out a timetable for his departure. The move followed the 2026 local elections and devolved elections to the Scottish Parliament and Senedd Cymru.

Labour deputy leadership 2025: Burgon was one of 24 Labour MPs who nominated Bell Ribeiro-Addy for the party’s deputy leadership in September 2025. The election followed the resignation of Angela Rayner, who stepped down as deputy prime minister and deputy party leader after an investigation into her tax affairs. It marked the first time since 2007 that Labour had held a deputy leadership contest while in government.

Ribeiro-Addy, a member of the Socialist Campaign Group (SCG), was seen as the candidate on the left of the party. She secured only 24 nominations from the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), far short of the 80 required under rules introduced in 2021.

Labour leadership 2020: Burgon was one of 33 Labour MPs who nominated Rebecca Long-Bailey for the party’s leadership in early 2020. The election was triggered by the resignation of Jeremy Corbyn following the party’s defeat in the 2019 general election, which resulted in Labour’s fewest seats in the House of Commons since 1935.

Long-Bailey, then the shadow business secretary, was widely regarded as the continuity candidate for the party’s left/Corbynite wing. Long-Bailey finished second with 27.6% of the vote, losing to Keir Starmer, who won a decisive victory in the first round with 56.2%.

Leader of the left letter: In May 2015, Burgon was among 10 newly elected Labour MPs who penned an open letter calling on the party to embrace a decisive break from New Labour. In the letter, the MPs called for a leader who will “challenge an agenda of cuts, take on the powerful vested interests of big business and will set out an alternative to austerity.”

Labour leadership 2015: Burgon was one of 36 Labour MPs who nominated Jeremy Corbyn for the party’s leadership in June 2015. The election followed the resignation of Ed Miliband after the party’s defeat in the 2015 general election. It was the first contest held under the “one member, one vote” system, which replaced the previous electoral college.

Corbyn, a veteran backbencher, secured the 36 nominations required – just one over the threshold – but only after several MPs lent him their support to ensure a broader ideological debate. His anti-austerity platform gained significant momentum, and he won a landslide victory in the first round with 59.5% of the vote.

Corbyn loyalty list: In March 2016, Burgon was labelled as “core group” by the Corbyn leadership in a leaked list which categorised Labour MPs by their perceived loyalty. This label suggested the Corbyn leadership viewed Burgon as among its closest allies, even as an inner circle member.

Labour leadership 2016: Burgon was one of the minority of Labour MPs who endorsed Jeremy Corbyn during his successful defence of the party leadership in September 2016. The election was triggered following a period of intense tension after the EU referendum, which saw a wave of shadow cabinet resignations and a vote of no confidence supported by 172 MPs.

Corbyn, who was automatically included on the ballot as the incumbent, was challenged by Owen Smith, the former shadow work and pensions secretary. Corbyn won the election with an increased mandate, securing 61.8% of the vote compared to 38.2% for Smith.

Factional identity and party tradition

Socialist Campaign Group: Burgon has been listed as a member of the Socialist Campaign Group (SCG) – the standard-bearer of the left wing within the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP). Founded in 1982 by followers of Tony Benn, the group has traditionally advocated policies such as widespread public ownership, wealth redistribution and strengthened trade union rights.

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In October 2020, ​​the SCG launched a pamphlet titled Winning the Future: socialist responses to the Coronavirus crisis, proposing “bold, practical solutions” to the pandemic. In his capacity as SCG secretary, Burgon described Covid as “the greatest crisis our communities have faced in decades” and said the priority for the labour movement must be to “force the government to change track”.

He added: “The solutions that the Labour movement puts forward and our organising around them can make a real difference to people’s lives in the here and now. It is also an essential part of preparing to win in 2024.”

Socialism26: In May 2026, Burgon was a signatory of Socialism26, a political initiative and pressure group launched by a coalition of Labour MPs and general secretaries from several major affiliated trade unions, including Unison, Aslef, the CWU, the TSSA and the FBU. The group described itself as advocating a “programme for change” intended to facilitate a “progressive political reset” within the Labour Party. It called for a return to traditional socialist values and greater internal party democracy.

The initiative was built upon a set of policy demands, including urging the government to “recognise the genocide in Gaza”, deliver full compensation for the “Waspi” women affected by state pension age changes, protect civil liberties and embrace intervention to lower energy bills.

Socialism26 described this programme as “the bare minimum to ensure that the public can see and feel the difference a socialist government makes to their lives.”

Labour ‘reset’: In March 2026, Burgon was among dozens of Labour parliamentarians to co-sign a statement calling for a “reset” in the party’s internal culture and political direction. The statement, supported by an alliance of MPs from both the Mainstream (“soft-left”) and Momentum (left) wings of the party, condemned what it saw as the “insular, centralising approach” of the leadership. It called on Labour to rebuild “basic democracy, pluralism and fair process within our party.”

The intervention followed a series of by-election results in Gorton and Denton, Runcorn and Helsby and Caerphilly.

The statement said: “We stand against the insular, centralising approach of the current leadership that refuses to draw on the energy, talent and ideas of our whole movement, the continued underfunding of public services and local government, and the pandering to the talking points of the far right.”

It added: “We, the undersigned members from every section of the Labour Party – parliamentarians, councillors, internal election candidates, members and trade unionists, pledge to reset the Labour Party.”

Corbyn suspension: In November 2020, Burgon was among the 32 SCG MPs to sign a statement declaring that they opposed the suspension of Jeremy Corbyn and calling for the disciplinary action to be “swiftly reversed”.

The statement read: “This decision and the division it causes severely undermines efforts to unite to defeat antisemitism and fully implement the EHRC [Equality and Human Rights Commission] recommendations and to challenge and defeat this disastrous Conservative government.”

Corbyn’s suspension came after he issued a response to the EHRC report, arguing “the scale of the [antisemitism] problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents”.

Momentum endorsement: Burgon was endorsed by the left-wing campaign group Momentum in the 2024 general election. Momentum was founded in 2015 to support the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn and to campaign for socialist policies within the Labour party.

He is a member of Labour CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament). In June 2025, speaking in the House of Commons, Burgon argued that Britain’s “independent nuclear deterrent” was in fact “technically and politically” dependent on the United States. He called on the government to work towards the “global elimination of nuclear weapons”.

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Spycops vote (2020): In October 2020, Burgon was one of the 34 Labour MPs to break the party whip by voting against the covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill at its commons third reading. The proposed legislation, often referred to as the “spycops bill”, was introduced by the Conservative government to authorise undercover agents and informants to commit crimes while on operations. The Labour Party had whipped its representatives to abstain on the bill on the basis that the legislation is “far from perfect” yet “necessary” due to “the need to provide a clear lawful framework for the use of human intelligence sources”.

Disability Labour: Burgon is listed as a patron of Disability Labour – a socialist society affiliated with the Labour Party that represents and supports disabled members. Founded in 1996, it campaigns for disability rights and to ensure that the perspectives of disabled people are central to the formulation of Labour Party policy.

Brexit and Europe

Brexit referendum: Burgon campaigned to remain in the 2016 referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union (EU), and therefore disagreed with a majority of constituents, 61.4% of whom voted to leave.

Article 50: In February 2017, Burgon voted in favour of the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill. The legislation empowered the prime minister to notify the Council of the European Union of the UK’s intention to withdraw, formally triggering the process set out in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. MPs supported the bill by 498 votes to 114 at second reading.

Brexit trade deal: In December 2020, Burgon was among the 37 Labour MPs to rebel against the leadership’s position on the EU (Future Relationship) Bill – which enabled the government to implement and ratify its post-Brexit trade deal with the EU. Keir Starmer, the newly elected Labour leader, argued that while the trade deal negotiated by Boris Johnson’s government was “thin” and flawed, the only alternative at that late stage was a “no-deal” exit. To enforce the leadership’s position, a three-line whip was imposed. Burgon abstained over the bill. One Labour MP, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, voted against the bill.

Customs union vote (2025): In December 2025, Burgon voted in favour of the UK-EU Customs Union (Duty to Negotiate) Bill. The bill, introduced under the ten-minute rule procedure by Liberal Democrat Europe spokesperson Al Pinkerton, sought to mandate the government to enter into negotiations with the European Union to establish a bespoke customs union. In total, 13 Labour MPs joined the Liberal Democrats in supporting the motion, while the majority of the party abstained.

Electoral reform

Proportional representation bill: In December 2024, Burgon voted in favour of the Elections (Proportional Representation) Bill – introduced by Liberal Democrat frontbencher Sarah Olney under the 10-minute rule procedure. The bill sought to “introduce a system of proportional representation for parliamentary elections and for local government elections in England”.

A total of 138 MPs supported the bill – with 136 opposed. Notably, 59 Labour MPs backed Olney’s bill.

Introducing the bill, Olney told the House: “First past the post is a broken and unfair system. This summer, the Labour party won a landslide election victory, securing 63% of seats in the House of Commons in return for just 34% of the vote.

“The system leaves millions of voices unheard and creates a divisive, adversarial political climate where collaboration is discouraged and accountability is often sidestepped.”

Welfare

Welfare ‘reasoned amendment’ (June 2025): Burgon was one of the over 120 Labour MPs to sign the reasoned amendment to the government’s flagship welfare bill which aimed to reject the proposed legislation.

The amendment, in the name of senior Labour MP Dame Meg Hillier, objected to the fact that the bill had not been subject to a “formal consultation with disabled people” and that “250,000 people will be pushed into poverty” as a result of it, according to a government impact assessment.

The motion also called on the government to wait for the publication of the review into the Personal Independence Payment (Pip), helmed by minister Sir Stephen Timms, and the independent review, conducted by Sir Charlie Mayfield, into how the employment of disabled people could be boosted.

In May 2025, Burgon had signed a letter warning the government that the cuts were “impossible to support” and calling for a change in direction.

The letter, signed by 42 Labour MPs, read: “The planned cuts of more than £7bn represent the biggest attack on the welfare state since George Osborne ushered in the years of austerity and over 3 million of our poorest and most disadvantaged will be affected.

“Whilst the government may have correctly diagnosed the problem of a broken benefits system and a lack of job opportunities for those who are able to work, they have come up with the wrong medicine. Cuts don’t create jobs, they just cause more hardship.”

Welfare vote (July 2025): Burgon went on to vote against the bill at second reading. The vote came after ministers agreed to significant concessions to avoid defeat via a mass rebellion of Labour MPs on 1 July 2025.

Winter fuel payment EDM: In September 2024, Burgon signed an early day motion (EDM) expressing concern over the government’s proposed changes to the winter fuel payment. The motion called on the government to “postpone the ending of winter fuel payments and establish a comprehensive strategy to tackle fuel poverty, health inequality and low incomes among older people.”

Welfare vote (July 2015): Alongside almost one quarter of his colleagues, Burgon voted against the Conservative government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill at second reading – defying the party whip which instructed Labour MPs to abstain. This decision to abstain, taken by interim Labour leader Harriet Harman, caused a furious backlash within the party, particularly from its left wing. It became a defining issue in the ongoing leadership contest. Jeremy Corbyn was the only candidate to vote against the bill. Overall, 48 Labour MPs voted against the proposed legislation.

Assisted dying

Burgon voted against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, better known as the assisted dying bill, at both second reading (November 2024) and third reading (June 2025).

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Social values and conscience issues

Abortion decriminalisation (2025): Burgon voted in favour of a backbench amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that sought to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales in June 2025. The amendment, which was passed by a majority of 242 votes, removed women from the threat of prosecution for ending a pregnancy at any stage. As an issue of conscience, MPs were allowed to vote according to their personal beliefs.

Social media ban: In January 2026, Burgon was one of over 60 Labour MPs to sign a letter to the prime minister calling for the introduction of an Australia-style ban on social media access for children under the age of 16. Organised by Plymouth Moor View MP Fred Thomas, the initiative brought together a cross-factional coalition of backbenchers – spanning the Socialist Campaign Group, Tribune Group and Blue Labour – to demand action.

The letter called on Keir Starmer to “show leadership” by introducing a minimum age for social media access “to protect young people from the consequences of unregulated, addictive social media platforms”.

It stated: “We are all strong supporters of technology, and of this Labour government’s ambition to use tech to improve lives. But successive governments have done far too little to protect young people from the consequences of unregulated, addictive social media platforms.”

Foreign policy and security

Sanctioned (Russia): In April 2022, Burgon was among the group of MPs placed on a sanctions list by the Russian government. The measure barred them from entering Russia and was presented by Moscow as a retaliatory response to the UK’s stance on the invasion of Ukraine.

Nato-scepticism: In February 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Burgon was one of 11 Labour MPs on the left of the party threatened with losing the party whip after they signed a statement by the Stop the War Coalition which criticised Nato, accusing the military alliance of “eastward expansion”.

All 11 MPs, Burgon included, subsequently removed their signatures.

Trident renewal (2016): Burgon voted against a government motion calling for the renewal of the Trident nuclear deterrent system in July 2016. The motion, which was passed by 472 votes to 117, committed the UK to constructing a new fleet of submarines to carry the nation’s nuclear weapons. Labour was split over the issue with 140 of its 230 MPs going against leader Jeremy Corbyn and backing the motion.

Syria airstrikes (2015): Burgon voted against a government motion to extend UK airstrikes against Isis from Iraq into Syria in December 2015. The motion, which was passed by 397 votes to 223 after a ten-hour debate in the House of Commons, authorised the RAF to conduct strikes against Isis targets in Syria.

Palestine

LFPME: Burgon has been listed as a member of Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East (LFPME). The organisation’s stated aim is to promote peace and justice in the region through the application of international law and respect for human rights.

Palestine Action vote: In July 2025, Burgon was one of 26 MPs to vote against the proscription of Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act of 2000. The ban, passed by 385 votes to 26, came after the Home Office accused the group of “aggressive and intimidatory attacks against businesses, institutions and the public”. However, civil liberties organisations argued proscription represented an overreach of state power and a threat to the right to protest.

Ceasefire vote (November 2023): Burgon was among 56 Labour MPs to vote in favour of a Scottish National Party (SNP) amendment to the King’s Speech in the House of Commons calling for an “immediate ceasefire” in the Israel-Hamas war – defying the instruction set out by the party’s frontbench. Labour had tabled its own motion, making a more moderate appeal for a “humanitarian pause” in the conflict and ordered its representatives to support that stance.

Civil liberties

Covid passes campaign (2021): Burgon was one of over 70 MPs and peers who launched a cross-party campaign against the “divisive and discriminatory use” of Covid passes in April 2021. The campaign was triggered by government reviews into “vaccine passports”, which signatories argued would create a two-tier society and infringe upon fundamental civil liberties.

Before Politics

Burgon was born in Leeds on 19 September 1980. His uncle is Colin Burgon, a former Labour MP for Elmet. Richard Burgon was educated at Cardinal Heenan Roman Catholic High School in Leeds and St Aidan’s and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form in Harrogate.

He studied English literature at St John’s College, University of Cambridge, where he was chair of the Cambridge University Labour Club (CULC). He was the first person in his immediate family to attend university.

After university, Burgon qualified as a solicitor in 2006. He worked for ten years as a trade union lawyer specialising in employment law at Thompsons Solicitors in Leeds, representing trade union members in employment tribunal cases.

Personal Life

Burgon grew up in Leeds and has distant Irish ancestry. His aunt was involved in Women Against Pit Closures during the 1984-85 miners’ strike, which he cites as sparking his interest in politics.

Trivia

Burgon enjoys live music and is a self-described “metalhead”, having heard an Iron Maiden song on a friend’s Walkman aged eight.

He is a member of the east Leeds history and archaeology society and the Leeds United Supporters’ Trust.

He is the nephew of former Labour MP Colin Burgon.

He was named as one of “the stars of the intake” by the Observer newspaper following the 2015 general election.