Burnham has just been humiliated after making five U-turns within weeks

Two Jeremy Vine Show panellists came to verbal blows on the Channel 5 show over Andy Burnham's string of political U-turns in the lead-up to the Makerfield by-election. On the show today (June 1), right-wing commentator Emily Hewertson butted heads with Nina Myskow over Burnham's "merits", as one caller on the show was left blindsided.

The row broke out as caller Robert from Essex said: "I voted for Burnham in the last Labour Party election, when he stood for leader-" only for host Vine to interject: "Emily wants to get in, Emily's got a point." With the camera on her, Hewertson argued: "I was just going to say, if we're talking about the integrity of Andy Burnham, shall we talk about the five U-turns he's made since he announced that he was going to be standing?

"On the EU, and then also he was originally critical on Labour's strict immigration policies, then all of a sudden he needs to be super popular and he needs to appeal to the people of Makerfield, and all of a sudden he's in favour of these stronger immigration policies!

"He's the king of the U-turns, not the king of the north!"

Myskow argued: "No he's not, this is politics and people adapting to changing times. I mean, if we're talking about integrity - I don't vote Labour, I haven't since the Iraq war. So I don't have a dog in the game, as it were.

"It seems to me Burnham has integrity, and he's proved that in Manchester, that he really seems to care about making people's lives better."

Hewertson fumed: "So does Nigel Farage," as Myskow argued: "Oh, Nigel Farage is an opportunistic, divisive... Follow the money."

Hewertson said: "He's had the same view since 1992. He has supported leaving the EU far before it was popular."

Vine was forced to cut in, asking: "Emily, don't you accept that Burnham has done well in Manchester?"

She responded: "I understand the merits of Burnham, completely, but if we're talking about integrity he has done five U-turns already." But Myskow would only say: "He's a politician, he's not a saint!"