The Labour MP for Alloa and Grangemouth said he would back Andy Burnham in a leadership race.
Brian Leishman believes the Greater Manchester mayor should be the man to take over the party and that "no one in the cabinet’s hands are clean from the first two years of Keir Starmer’s leadership”.
He added that Mr Burnham’s record as “speaks for itself”.
Mr Leishman said: “I also think that he is probably the most skilful communicator in the Labour Party at the moment, at whatever level, and he is the best person that I think that can basically take the fight, the growing fight and danger that Reform pose.”
Speaking outside Parliament, he added: “Andy Burnham is undoubtedly, in my opinion, the most skilful Labour politician to deliver proper Labour values – I want to see him in parliament, I want to see him in leadership.”
Mr Burnham is not an MP but has been given the chance to gain the Makerfield seat after Labour MP Josh Simons said he'd resign to make way for him.
However, after Reform did so well in the council elections in England last week, it's not a foregone conclusion that he would win the by-election.
Mr Leishman has already chosen a side and said: “We’re nearly at half time, we’re nearly two years through… this Labour Government – we have still got plenty of time if we act now and we act decisively and embrace the radical Labour Party values, we’ve still got time to turn this around.
"The only thing that will save the party is getting back to its real, true values, core values and principles that so many of our members, our grassroots members hold so dear.
“The societal problems that we face as a nation and all nations across the United Kingdom is absolutely devastating working class communities, and we have got to get back to being in the service of working class communities, investing in public services – the solution for all the ills that we have in society can be found in real Labour Party values.”
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