Britain's Labour leadership is resigned to fighting a "hard-hitting" London mayoral campaign with the left-wing MP, Mr Ken Livingstone, standing as an Independent candidate, a party spokesman said yesterday. Ahead of a meeting between Mr Livingstone and the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr John Prescott, the spokesman said the party could not ignore the "noises" about the Brent MP standing against the official candidate, Mr Frank Dobson.
The party had been "conciliatory" toward Mr Livingstone in the immediate aftermath of the electoral college result, but he admitted the mood had now changed. "We have moved to a position where we are assuming he is going to run as an Independent," the spokesman said. "If he chooses to run as an Independent we will run a hard-hitting campaign highlighting what he has said and what he has done. We are not talking about smearing him."
In a statement earlier, Mr Livingstone urged the government not to ignore the views of Labour members in London who were opposed to the part-privatisation of the Tube. Offering a strong hint that he would stand as an Independent candidate, Mr Livingstone said he wanted to give Londoners the chance to vote for "the candidate and the policy backed by the majority of Labour members."
There were further hints during the day that Mr Livingstone was close to announcing his candidacy. Before the meeting with Mr Prescott, Mr Livingstone's camp said friends and supporters had convinced the MP he should stand as an Independent candidate because to do otherwise would signal the end of his political career. Livingstone insiders said yesterday the MP was "99 per cent certain" to abandon the Labour Party and defy attempts to encourage him to support Mr Dobson's election campaign.