George Osborne wanted to curb immigration ahead of EU vote, Ed Ball claims

Mr Balls claims David Cameron refused to allow Mr Osborne to address voters' concerns on immigration

George Osborne (left) and Ed Balls campaigning together during the referendum campaign at Ryanair's base at Stansted Airport (PA)

George Osborne wanted a last-ditch pledge to curb immigration in an effort to sway voters in the closing stages of the European Union referendum campaign, his former rival Ed Balls has claimed.

The then chancellor, who shared a platform with his Labour former sparring partner while campaigning to keep the UK in the EU, was keen to address voters' concerns on immigration - but David Cameron refused, Mr Balls claimed.

The move would have echoed the "Vow" given to Scottish voters in the final days of the independence campaign, which was aimed at showing that staying in the Union would not be a vote for the status quo.

Mr Balls told The Times: "George said that he was very conscious of the status quo point and thought, like in Scotland, we would need to come back with a Vow-style commitment to more reform, including around immigration, in the final week or two."

The former political opponents appeared together during the referendum campaign at Ryanair's base at Stansted Airport in May.

In an extract from his forthcoming book Speaking Out, Mr Balls said he and his wife Yvette Cooper believed a major late intervention was needed to sway referendum voters.

"In the later stages of the EU referendum, when Yvette and I both called for a similar Vow-like statement that the UK would continue to push for more reform of free movement, we were told by the Remain campaign that our interventions were unhelpful," he said.

Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson and "key figures" in the Remain camp "knew something had to be done", he added.

"I believe, based on our conversations at Ryanair and subsequently, that George Osborne did too, but David Cameron refused to budge from his view that his renegotiation was sufficient.

"And then when (Labour leader) Jeremy Corbyn appeared on television the weekend before the poll to declare that free movement was non-negotiable, the argument was lost."

In a wide-ranging interview, Mr Balls joked that his appearance in this year's Strictly Come Dancing is the latest sign of his "midlife crisis".

He said: "Let's be honest, I'm not a natural dancer."

Mr Balls, who lost his seat in the Commons in 2015, said "I've got rhythm" but he acknowledged Strictly could "turn out to be a total nightmare".

He claimed he could waltz and "do a sort of version of rock 'n' roll", but added: "When it comes to the more formal dances, it would be fair to describe myself as a complete novice."

The ex-MP, who became the highest-profile casualty at the 2015 general election, said he had been "offered the House of Lords" but "it is not what I wanted at all".

Mr Balls, whose wife was among the candidates defeated by Mr Corbyn in the party leadership contest in 2015, also said Labour needs a change at the top.

"Jeremy Corbyn is a rational person. Even he must know that this leadership is not working for him," Mr Balls said.

"If you are the kind of person who feels that you are succeeding when you have a rally of your supporters cheering you, well, that's not my conception of politics. My conception of politics is that you succeed when sceptical centre-ground voters decide to trust you more than the other side."

Mr Balls also hit out at the "anti-Israel sentiment" in parts of Labour and the "real nastiness in the way some Labour Party members engage".

Press Association