Party's hopefuls round on Brown

"Maverick" candidate Manish Sood, who said the Prime Minister "didn't know what he was talking about", was disowned by his local Labour Party in North West Norfolk after defiantly standing by his personal attack on Mr Brown.

But Mr Brown faced fresh embarrassment last night when veteran Austin Mitchell, standing again for Labour in Grimsby, urged voters to back the party and "forget Gordon's grumbling ineptitude and obvious exhaustion".

A Conservative spokesman said: "Finally Labour's own candidates are acknowledging what we have said all along, this election is a choice between five more years of Gordon Brown's tired and divided Labour government making things worse or David Cameron and the Conservatives with the energy, leadership and values to get the country moving."

Mr Sood, branded a "maverick" by Justice Secretary Jack Straw, made his comments in an interview with his local newspaper which was printed just 48 hours before polls opened. Yesterday he remained defiant.

Local Labour officials in North West Norfolk, a safe Tory seat, branded him a "dreadful candidate" and said they had considered deselecting him but had decided it was not worthwhile.

He described himself as a "freedom fighter" and said: "I will stand by what I say because I know it's the truth and nothing but the truth.

"All I'm trying to do is bring back the true Labour policies we had under Michael Foot. We have a Prime Minister who is incompetent, who doesn't know what he is talking about, who is not clear on his policies and the problems are getting bigger in terms of the bureaucracy."

Mr Brown and senior party officials sought to brush off the comments, but there was fresh embarrassment as Mr Mitchell's comments emerged on his internet blog. Although he has a healthy majority, the Tories have been campaigning strongly.

Urging voters to back Labour, Mr Mitchell said it was time to forget the grievances and grumbles a government in power produces. "Time to forget Gordon's grumbling ineptitude and obvious exhaustion."

He added that it was time to vote "and to vote Labour even if you have to say 'Voter give an honest curse. Defend the bad against far worse' as you do so."