Labour in disarray as Big Guns seek Brown leadership vote

Former Cabinet Ministers Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt stunned Westminster by calling for questions over Mr Brown's leadership to be resolved "once and for all" through a secret ballot of Labour MPs.

As Ministers belatedly rallied around the Prime Minister last night and the immediate threat appeared to have been seen off, the rebels faced an angry backlash from MPs worried that the challenge would hit Labour's fortunes just weeks away from a General Election.

Only a handful of MPs – including Huddersfield's Barry Sheerman, an arch critic of the Prime Minister – broke cover to support the ballot calls.

But some of the Government's most senior figures were last night accused of giving tacit support to the rebels.

The plotters were said to have claimed that half a dozen Cabinet Ministers were ready to join a coup.

The Ministers in question were named by the BBC as Commons Leader Harriet Harman, Foreign Secretary David Miliband, International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander, Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth, Justice Secretary Jack Straw and Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy.

The six had apparently signalled to rebels that they were prepared to join an effort to remove the Prime Minister if it was conducted in the right way, according to the BBC.

All released statements yesterday rejecting the surprise ballot call from former Cabinet ministers Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt. However, their comments appeared to stop short of giving Mr Brown full backing.

David Miliband, seen as the most likely challenger for the job, took more than six hours to respond before he offered support to "the re-election campaign for a Labour Government".

Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman also waited until after 6pm to issue a statement saying: "We're all united in our determination to do what's best for the country, which is for Labour, led by Gordon Brown, to win the General Election."

The plea by former chief whip Mr Hoon and ex-Health Secretary Ms Hewitt came in an e-mail to Labour MPs while Mr Brown was performing well against Tory leader David Cameron at Prime Minister's Questions in the Commons. Labour has also been buoyed by recent poll results and its attacks on Tory tax policies.

The pair denied they were part of a plot to oust Mr Brown, but said it was clear the party remained "deeply divided" over his leadership.

They added: "We have therefore come to the conclusion that the only way to resolve this issue would be to allow every member to express their view in a secret ballot, " their letter said, adding that MPs should be bound by the results.

Mr Sheerman, who has been publicly calling for a change of leadership for several months, said a vote should be held on Monday to "clear this out of the way".

"There are many of us that still passionately believe that if you have a party leader whose personal rating is well below his party's, then you have to look at the leadership, " he said.

Former Cabinet Ministers Charles Clarke and Frank Field were among a handful of other MPs to back a ballot.

But as party officials questioned yesterday whether a vote could take place under the party's constitution, there was a fierce backlash from Mr Brown's supporters.

Former Home Secretary David Blunkett said: "The ballot being called for is not possible according to our party's rules, it is not wanted by the Parliamentary Labour Party and, what is more, it is not needed."

Halifax MP Linda Riordan branded the plot "pathetic" and "self-indulgent nonsense" while Keighley's Ann Cryer said Labour MPs in marginal seats were "very, very upset".