Short: Critic of Blair

Clare Short has claimed that the prime minister offered to step down if Gordon Brown gave his backing to British membership of the euro.

In her new book, being serialised in the Independent, the former Cabinet minister says she was used as go-between in discussions on the issue.

She says Tony Blair was prepared to hand over power to the chancellor before the next general election if he backed plans to take the UK into the single currency.

Short claims that Brown declined the offer, insisting that the economy was not ready to join the eurozone.

The former international development secretary said that on a trip to west Africa in February 2002, Blair told her that the chancellor should "help him more".

"He then went on to say, in a confidential manner, that he really did not want a third term but wished Gordon would work more closely with him so that he could make progress on the euro and if he did so he would be happy to hand over to Gordon," she wrote.

The prime minister has since insisted that he will serve a "full" third term.

With relations between the two most powerful men in government continuing to be a source of instability for Labour, Short also reveals details of their diverging policy views.

According to the book, Brown said he was "sick of fighting against bad proposals" being put forward by Downing Street.

The chancellor was said to have blocked plans to remove child benefit from the parents of truants, but foundation hospitals and university top-up fees went ahead.