Labour needs a bold and ambitious manifesto for the next election, Stephen Byers has said.

The former Cabinet minister said that without a "Blairite" manifesto there would be questions over Tony Blair's determination to serve a full third term in office.

His comments to the GMTV Sunday Programme came amid reports that Labour chiefs have yet to decide on whether to adopt a radical or "safety first" manifesto.

Insiders are likely to conclude that Byers, himself a leading Blairite, is using the leadership issue to push the prime minister into a more radical stance.

"I think the acid test will be whether or not we have a clearly Blairite manifesto for Labour in the run up to the next general election," said Byers.

"Now if we don’t have a bold ambitious manifesto of real change then I think people will raise the question well, perhaps Blair isn't going to be around to see it through.

"So I think that's a challenge for the Labour Party, it's a challenge for the prime minister to make sure that manifesto has his imprint over it."

He added that the prime minister had a "huge appetite" for a full third term in power.

And speaking to the same programme, culture secretary Tessa Jowell added that Tony Blair’s leadership is "indispensable" to Labour.

She said the government had experienced "unprecedented success" under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

"It is the most successful partnership in modern history and Tony Blair must go down as one of the most successful prime ministers. And his leadership is indispensable," Jowell added.