A junior minister resigned from Gordon Brown's government today in the highest-profile revolt against the British prime minister's leadership so far.
David Cairns was a minister in the Scotland Office. Two MPs have already been sacked from government jobs for expressing dissatisfaction with Brown's leadership and a third quit after saying he should be challenged.
"The Prime Minister has accepted David Cairns' resignation. The exercise of government demands collective responsibility," Brown's office said in a statement.
Earlier, the Labour Party national executive committee rejected calls for a leadership election that could have threatened Brown's 15-month-old premiership.
Labour party heavyweights rallied round Mr Brown with Chancellor Alistair Darling telling BBC radio he had "every confidence" in Brown, while former foreign secretary Margaret Beckett said there was "nobody better" to be in charge of the country.
"When ... there are very serious international concerns about the economy, I really don't think most people will think we should be wanting to spend time on discussing whether we should have a different prime minister," Ms Becket told the BBC.
Home secretary Jacqui Smith added her support, telling Sky News that Mr Brown put his credentials to the test "every single day" to make Britain a better place.
Mr Brown has failed to quell a growing chorus of dissent within his own party at the way he has led the country since taking over as prime minister from Tony Blair in June last year.
After a series of crushing election reverses and with Labour trailing the Conservatives in the polls by 20 points, Labour politicians are increasingly questioning whether Mr Brown has what it takes to lead a country on the verge of recession.
Labour MP Fiona MacTaggart, one of 12 dissidents members of parliament calling for a leadership contest, said party leaders had been acting "like ostriches" with their heads in the sand hoping that things would get better
"That is not now possible", she told BBC radio.
Labour's ruling National Executive Committee (NEC), as expected, rejected requests to send out leadership nomination forms.
"The NEC will not be sending out nomination papers," a Labour Party spokeswoman said.
Mr Brown has already fired three Labour MPs in the space of four days for disloyalty after they called for a leadership challenge.
The rebellion has comes a week before Labour's annual conference in Manchester, and has sabotaged Mr Brown's attempts to relaunch his premiership after the credit crunch and rising prices sent his popularity plummeting.
Labour rebels had demanded that nomination forms for a leadership ballot be sent to all members of parliament before the conference.
They need 71 signatures to trigger a contest.
Reuters