Labour hopefuls face questions

The hustings in Leicester come amid further signs that Labour has benefited from a so-called "Brown bounce" since the Chancellor was confirmed as Tony Blair's successor.

A poll for the Independent newspaper found that the party had surged four points to 31% over the past month.

Although David Cameron's Tories still hold a four-point lead, their support has dipped 1% to 35% over the same period, according to the research.

Earlier, the deputy leadership candidates faced off in a live debate on BBC2's Newsnight programme.

The six - who all voted for the Iraq war - were quizzed on whether they would do so again with the benefit of hindsight.

Justice minister Harriet Harman and backbencher Jon Cruddas both admitted they had been wrong to back the action. However, Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain said it was wrong to abdicate responsibility for the decision by "rewriting history".

There were also strong exchanges over plans to allow police to stop and question people without any grounds for suspicion.

Ms Harman expressed anger that a Sunday newspaper had been briefed on the proposals before the Cabinet, and said the Government had got into "bad habits" with a "culture of spin".

Mr Hain said the way the information was released risked alienating minority communities who felt threatened by such measures.