Nominations: Balls wins way on to leadership ballot

The Morley and Outwood MP has obtained the 33 nominations from fellow MPs necessary to take part in the full contest, according to figures released on the party's website.

He is the third candidate to confirm his place, after brothers Ed and David Miliband.

The three remaining contenders yet to receive the required number of backers – former health secretary Andy Burnham and left-wingers John McDonnell and Diane Abbott – failed to gain any more support yesterday.

Mr Burnham remained on 17, Mr McDonnell was on six and Ms Abbott had just one nomination.

David and Ed Miliband, MP for Doncaster North, held steady on 54 and 45 nominations respectively.

Reaching the 33 mark would be a relief to Mr Balls, who polarises opinion among colleagues with his background as one of Gordon Brown's key allies.

In a column for Tribune magazine, he called for the Labour Party to focus on being a "responsible and effective opposition" and stressed his commitment to Labour's historic ties with the unions.

He said the party needs to build "from the bottom up" and reconnect with the kind of voters it attracted in 1997.

Ms Abbott officially launched her leadership campaign at a sixth form college in Hackney with a pledge to fight public sector cuts and make bankers foot the bill for the financial crisis.

Ed Miliband threw his weight behind demands for a "living wage" of more than 7 an hour.

In a speech in London, he said he wanted to get the Labour Party behind the campaign, calling for a rate of 7.60 in London and a national average outside the capital of 7.16.