Britain's Conservative Party prepared for the first round of voting for a new leader today as the front-runner claimed he was the victim of a smear campaign designed to stop him winning.
Mr Michael Portillo, considered the favourite in a group of five candidates, denied he had done anything wrong by failing to declare fees from speaking engagements when he was a minister in the government of former prime minister Mr John Major.
The fees went to Mr Portillo's local Conservative association. But the Guardiannewspaper said Portillo should have declared the amounts, more than £20,000 sterling from British and US companies, under parliamentary rules.
"This whole thing I think is a smear against me by what is after all a Labour-supporting newspaper," Mr Portillo told the BBC.
Mr Portillo (48) hopes to fulfil his dream of leading the Conservative Party, which dominated British politics when he was first talent-spotted by former prime minister Mrs Margaret Thatcher.
The party's leader, Mr William Hague, announced he was quitting last month after the Tories' second crushing election defeat in four years.
The other candidates are former finance minister Mr Ken Clarke, party defence spokesman Mr Iain Duncan-Smith, former Northern Ireland minister Mr Michael Ancram and parliamentarian Mr David Davis.