BRITAIN:KEN LIVINGSTONE has apparently widened his lead over Conservative challenger Boris Johnson just days before London's landmark mayoral election.
That, however, was the only good news for Labour on a weekend that saw prime minister Gordon Brown further undermined by claims that Tony Blair believes he is not capable of defeating Conservative leader David Cameron in a general election.
With Downing Street braced for heavy losses in Thursday's local elections in England and Wales, Labour gloom was compounded by two new polls - one from the key marginal constituencies - suggesting the Conservatives are on course for a sweeping victory whenever the general election comes.
ICM Research managing director Nick Sparrow claimed his poll was "the most accurate" in assessing the state of play in the marginal seats, projecting a 9 per cent swing away from the governing party and a massive 131 Labour seats set to fall to the Conservatives.
The poll, for the News of the World, would have Mr Cameron winning by the same margin as Mr Blair in New Labour's 1997 landslide, with the Tory leader ahead of Mr Brown on key issues such as hospitals, education, transport, immigration and, now, the economy.
As Mr Brown faced into the most crucial week to date of his 10-month premiership, a separate ICM poll for the Sunday Telegraphshowed Labour 10 points adrift at the end of a "worst week" for Mr Brown dominated by Labour backbench rebellion over the abolition of the starter 10p tax band.
Faced with a wave of threatened public-sector pay strikes, ministers were already battling to avert public panic amid pressure on business secretary John Hutton to intervene in the Grangemouth refinery dispute and guarantee fuel supplies.
Meanwhile, internal Labour panic reached new heights with the claim by Lord Levy, Mr Blair's controversial fundraiser, that the former prime minister believes Mr Brown "could never beat" Mr Cameron in a general election and that Mr Blair is "disappointed" by Labour's slide under his successor.
Mr Blair categorically denied the claims by Lord Levy, whose memoirs were serialised in yesterday's Mail on Sunday.
His spokesman said: "Tony Blair said when he stood down that he would be 100 per cent loyal to Gordon Brown and that continues to be the case. He doesn't agree with the views attributed to him by Lord Levy and fully believes Labour with Gordon Brown's leadership can win the next election."
However, Mr Blair's denial was certain to be greeted with widespread scepticism because Lord Levy's claims chime with briefings given by sources close to Mr Blair prior to and following last year's change of leadership.
Several newspapers at the time reported Mr Blair's belief and concern that Mr Brown had deliberately used the "cash for honours" scandal as a weapon to try to force his early departure from Number 10, a claim repeated in Lord Levy's memoir.
According to Lord Levy, Mr Blair believed he could have stayed on to win a fourth term: "'But Gordon? He can't defeat Cameron,' Tony told me.
"Blair believed Cameron had major strengths - political timing, a winning personality and a natural ability to communicate with middle England that Gordon would be unable ever to match."
Asked in an interview what Mr Blair thought of Mr Brown's performance in Number 10, Lord Levy replied: "He is disappointed to see Labour's lead slide. Anyone who has led a party for that long is going to be disappointed by what is going on at the moment."
Lord Levy also claims Mr Brown knew about Labour's controversial secret loans, while blaming Mr Blair for the decision to start taking loans from donors - a decision the former fundraiser says he strongly opposed.
However, his most damaging claim, about Mr Blair's assessment of the Brown leadership, came as the Observerreported Labour MPs pleading with the prime minister to "stay away from the campaign trail" this week for fear of wrecking Mr Livingstone's chances of being re-elected for a third term as mayor.
The latest Ipsos Mori poll gives Mr Livingstone a six-point lead over Mr Johnson among those certain to vote on Thursday after second preferences are taken into account.
However, that lead was reduced to four points after factoring in those not registered to vote.