Meacher mounts the Old Labour challenge to Brown

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Mr Meacher has been widely expected to put his name forward as a left-wing candidate to succeed Tony Blair

Veteran MP Michael Meacher pledged a return to old Labour values as he announced he would challenge Gordon Brown for the party leadership.

The former Environment Minister promised the renationalisation of Britain's railways, a higher minimum wage and a cap on City bonuses in a bid to win over the Left.

Read more... • Michael Meacher: A thorn in Blair's side

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Mr Meacher, 67, insisted he has the support of at least 30 MPs and said he was confident of getting the 45 votes necessary to mount a challenge to the Chancellor. He added it was not a "foregone conclusion" that Mr Brown would be the next leader.

The controversial MP has unveiled policies which include withdrawing troops from Iraq and blocking Britain's plans for a Trident nuclear deterrent.

Speculation is mounting at Westminster that allies of Mr Brown have encouraged Mr Meacher to stand in order to split the vote on the left of the party.

Left-winger John McDonnell is the only other contender at this stage, leaving hard-Left backbenchers concerned that both men will be left scrambling for the necessary votes to trigger a race with Mr Brown.

Mr Meacher, who represents Oldham West and Royton, is one of the party's longest-serving MPs. He worked in the Wilson and Callaghan governments and was made a minister by Tony Blair.

He has been a vocal critic of the Government, however, since he was sacked in 2003.

Only a handful of Labour MPs turned up to the launch of Mr Meacher's campaign. The event further descended into a farce when Ian Gibson MP - who chaired the Westminster event - disclosed: "He has asked some people if we would respect his decision to run, but that doesn't mean we will vote for him."

Mr Meacher was left embarrassed by his decision to vote in favour of the war in Iraq in 2003, which he described as the "biggest mistake of my life".

The Labour MP accused Tony Blair of "deliberately misinforming" MPs and voters over the state of intelligence on Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. He added: "If the U.S. were to attack Iran, I would not put at risk a single British soldier or a single RAF pilot in support of such a crazed venture."

Mr Meacher said it was vital that the next leader of the Labour Party should be chosen by election, not in a "coronation".

He added: "There are major differences of view about the Government's direction of travel which I think certainly need to be understood, debated and voted on in the party."

Mr Meacher described Mr Brown as an '"architect" of the New Labour project and warned that the gap between the poor and rich had expanded to "obscene" proportions.

"We need a new social policy if the growing divisions within our society are to be healed," he said.

"And, frankly, it is not sustainable to be doling out £9 billion in City bonuses to a few thousand City high-fliers at the same time as 12.5 million people in the same society - that is nearly one-fifth of the population - remain in poverty."

Mr Meacher said he was also taking personal steps to be environmentally conscious by using the train to travel to and from his constituency and "virtually never" using a car in London.

"We are at war on climate change," he added. "We need profound change in every aspect of Government and our way of life."

Allies of Mr Brown said they were "very relaxed" about Mr Meacher's leadership bid and privately welcomed the chance to take on the Left in a leadership battle.

But Mr Meacher's decision to stand also increased speculation that a leading Blairite - such as David Miliband or John Hutton - could enter the race.

Some modernisers are concerned that a drawn- out public debate over Old Labour values would be damaging for the party as it faces David Cameron's resurgent Tories.

Labour MP Stephen Pound described Mr Meacher as a "faintly ridiculous" figure. He said: "It's a pity because, frankly, he's going to get humiliated. I suspect he knows that."

His rival Mr McDonnell said: "It is clear that there should be an election for the leader of the Labour Party based upon a choice of policies not personalities. Michael's announcement doesn't change that choice."

Mr Meacher's prospects suffered a further blow when Commons leader Jack Straw told journalists: "For those who want to place a wager, my advice is to find a horse."

One Whitehall insider added: "Michael's campaign launch has sunk before it has even taken off."

 

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