IT MAY be Labour's first crisis. It is certainly embarrassing. As the Scottish Secretary, Mr Donald Dewar, ordered a "vigorous" police investigation yesterday into newspaper allegations that a Labour MP offered a bribe to a rival candidate in order to win a seat during the election campaign, Tory MP's must have rubbed their hands together in glee.
Just two weeks ago, as Labour swept into office promising "very serious" action against accusations of sleaze, Mr Mohammed Sarwar, who became Britain's first Muslim MP when he won the Glasgow Govan seat. Mr Sarwar dismissed the allegations last night as "totally false" and he is considering issuing a libel writ against the newspaper.
In a swift response to the allegations, Mr Sarwar was summoned to a meeting at Donning Street yesterday with the Chief Whip, Mr Nick Brown, to explain his side of the argument. When he emerged a short time afterwards, Mr Sarwar said he had been given a clear chance to prove his innocence. "The allegations made about me in today's newspapers are totally false," said Mr Sarwar in a statement. "Therefore in addition to cooperating with any police investigation, I will be consulting with my lawyers about taking out a writ for defamation."
Mr Sarwar has also asked for an independent inquiry to investigate the allegations. The allegations made in the News of the World focus on his relationship with Mr Badar Islam, his Independent Labour rival in Govan. The newspaper claims that Mr Sarwar met Mr Islam before the election to persuade him to run a losing campaign.
Once Mr Sarwar won the Govan seat, however, he was accused of vote rigging by Mr Peter Pat on, a Scottish Unofficial Labour candidate, and it was to discredit Mr Paton's claims that the newspaper alleges Mr Sarwar handed over £5,000 in a carrier bag to Mr Islam last week.
Admitting the "serious" nature of the allegations, Mr Brown has asked Labour's National Executive Committee to consider an internal party inquiry although at this stage it is unlikely that Mr Sarwar, who has returned to Scotland, will face disciplinary action.
The Home Secretary, Mr Jack Straw, promised "serious actions" if the allegations were proved to be true. "We take these allegations very seriously and we've made it clear that we would expect appropriate sanctions if allegations like this are found to be proved."
Meanwhile, the former Tory minister, Ms Ann Widdecombe, continues to stalk the leadership bid of the former home secretary, Mr Michael Howard, amid promises that she will attack his political credentials in the House of Commons today.
Ms Widdecombe, who says she will support any candidate who becomes party leader, is expected to use the last full day of debate on the Queen's speech to challenge Mr Howard's "unjust" dismissal of the former director of prisons, Mr Derek Lewis. She will also question the truth of Mr Howard's statements to the Commons on the issue in 1995.