Graphic: the local election results | Graphic:history of election results | Graphic: how London voted

David Miliband, Ed Balls, Alan Johnson and James Purnell emerged as the bookmakers’ favourites to succeed Gordon Brown as yesterday’s local elections disaster prompted speculation about the Prime Minister’s future.

It is highly unlikely that any move would be made against Mr Brown, or that he would walk voluntarily, but Labour MPs are turning their thoughts to their next leader if only because the prospect of defeat in a general election looms larger.

It has never been Labour’s practice to treat its leaders cruelly, as Michael Foot’s survival showed even when it was clear that he would lose the 1983 election.

Senior Cabinet ministers told The Times that Mr Brown would be given time to plot a recovery. In any case, most would calculate that it would not be in their interests to take over now.

Most senior Labour figures would see dropping Mr Brown as paving the way for a divisive leadership contest and handing electoral victory to David Cameron.

They see it as far better for the likes of Mr Miliband, Mr Balls or Mr Purnell either to wait for Mr Brown to make a recovery or to take over after a spell of Tory government. Perhaps only Mr Johnson, who is 58 and might be too old to wait so long, could be served by an early leadership contest.

As is usual, the ministers most often mentioned as contenders have been emphasising their loyalty to Mr Brown and demanding that the Government listen and learn.

Mr Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, delivered a powerful appeal for unity under Mr Brown in newspaper articles and on television last weekend.

Mr Balls – for a long time Mr Brown’s closest political ally – gave a no-holds-barred BBC interview yesterday in which he said that the dismal poll showing could not be dismissed simply as a midterm problem.

“I think people are worried about the state of the economy, but on the doorstep they have also been cross with us,” he said.

“They think that their tax bills are going up, that their fuel prices are going up, that their utility bills are going up, and they want to know that we’re doing more to help them through difficult times and that we are on their side.

“I think this is about Labour supporters who are cross, they are worried and we need to do a lot more to show we’re on their side.”

While Mr Balls spoke on the radio, Mr Johnson was doing the same on television and Mr Purnell appeared in interviews during the night and throughout yesterday.

Others took to the airwaves. The Deputy Labour leader, Harriet Harman, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that the results had been “very disappointing indeed”, but said that the elections had taken place against a background of rising economic concerns.

“We didn’t respond early enough to those groups of people who were going to lose out as a result of the change in the 10p rate, which overall benefits lower income people but there were some people who lost out and we didn’t react early enough,” she said.

Labour’s Chief Whip, Geoff Hoon, said: “There’s no crisis. This isn’t something that’s going to affect the fundamental stability of the Government.”

That was not the view of the bookmakers, however, who slashed the odds on Mr Brown going before the end of the year from 25-1 to 5-1.

William Hill odds for next Labour leader

David Miliband 2-1
Ed Balls 5-1
Alan Johnson 7-1
James Purnell 10-1
Jack Straw 10-1

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