Lucy Powell has been elected as the deputy leader of the Labour Party.
But who is she and what does she stand for?
Powell began her career in politics working for Labour MPs Glenda Jackson and Beverley Hughes.
She then worked for a pro-EU campaign group.
After that, she ran Ed Miliband’s successful Labour leadership campaign and was his deputy chief of staff until she was elected as the MP for Manchester Central in 2012.
She has been at the forefront of Labour politics for over a decade, serving under Ed Miliband, Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer.
After Labour won the last general election, she was appointed as the leader of the House of Commons in Starmer’s cabinet.
But last month she was sacked in the cabinet reshuffle and came to be seen as the anti-Starmer candidate.
During the deputy leadership campaign, Powell promised to “provide a stronger, more independent voice” for members of the Labour Party.
And in her acceptance speech, she said the government hadn’t been bold enough, and that it needed to step up.
So how much of a problem is she going to be for Keir Starmer?
Her new role – and being outside the cabinet – means she will be free to criticise the government, which could make life more difficult for the prime minister.
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Powell has been outspoken about her desire for the government to lift the two child benefit cap – and also called for the country to work for the many and not the few – a Corbyn-era slogan – and that Labour must stop handing the megaphone over to Reform and letting them run away with it.
Starmer will be conscious that an MP he sacked not long ago is now in a powerful role able to speak freely and attack his decisions.
But Powell is not free from her own controversies.
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In May, Lucy Powell called grooming gangs a dog whistle issue – something she later had to clarify after it caused outrage among campaigners and opposition parties.
She also vocally defended Labour’s unpopular cut to winter fuel allowance while in cabinet, before the government then U-turned on the policy – she then criticised the proposed welfare cuts after she was sacked from government.
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Powell insists she wants to help Keir Starmer, providing constructive criticism and a voice for Labour members.
But will Keir Starmer see it that way?
