One of Gordon Brown’s closest political allies has publicly called for a general election to be held next year, sparking fresh speculation that the prime minister will exploit his bounce in the polls to call a snap ballot.

June 2009 would be an “ideal opportunity” to hold an election, according to Charlie Whelan, who was Brown’s press secretary when he was chancellor and is now political officer to Unite, Britain’s biggest trade union.

Until now, no member of Brown’s inner circle has spoken in public about the prospect of going to the country before 2010. Labour’s spin doctors, desperate to avoid a repeat of last year’s U-turn debacle, have been ordered to quash speculation about an early vote.

Whelan’s comments echo what many of Brown’s advisers have been recently saying in private, however. While most senior Labour figures believe 2010 is still the most likely year for an election, they also think it is important to keep open the option of summer 2009.

Whelan laid out his arguments in the Strathspey and Badenoch Herald, a newspaper in the Scottish Highlands in which he has an occasional column. A keen angler, Whelan divides his time between Westminster and his second home on the banks of the river Spey.

“The big question is, will there be a general election?” said Whelan. “We have the Euro elections in June and this could be an ideal opportunity for the prime minister to go to the country.

“In May Gordon Brown will be hosting the world economic summit in Britain, and with the new president of America, Barack Obama,

in town, there is bound to be wall-to-wall media coverage.

“David Cameron will be lucky to get a look-in. In any event, the current Tory economic strategy of doing nothing will by then probably see them behind in the polls. The popular wisdom is that the government couldn’t win an election in a recession, but John Major did in 1992.

“The fact is that most people think Gordon Brown is the best man to lead the country in a crisis.”

Downing Street sources said the prime minister had ruled out a February poll but a summer election remained a possibility. Publicly, Brown has sought to damp speculation, saying he is concentrating on the economy.

Jaguar aid

Ministers are preparing to bail out Jaguar Land Rover, the car maker, with a government loan worth up to £500m.

Direct government intervention is thought highly likely as the company’s plight is so serious, there is a risk that no bank would lend it money.

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