Paddington campaigner demands his Labour file

Martin Minns, the man at the centre of the Whitehall email row, is calling on the Labour party to disclose any personal files they hold on him.

Mr Minns, an adviser to the Paddington Survivors campaign group, found himself under attack following the revelation that former Secretary of State for Transport Stephen Byers' special adviser Dan Corry had run a check on him.

Mr Minns said last night that he was "irritated" by the Labour party's intrusion into his life . "I want to know what else they have," he said.

He was also annoyed that his former work for the Conservative party should have been used against the survivors group. "I dislike this attitude you can try to get dirt on somebody rather than dealing with the issue," he said.

The Labour files were unable to turn up much on Mr Minns. He was a regional agent in 1983 and became an assistant campaign director in Conservative Central Office in 1989. He has advised many parties across the world on election campaigns, including some in South Africa.

In 1992, he set up his own PR business which brought him into conflict with his former colleagues at Central Office when, on behalf of British meat exporters, he staged a demonstration outside the Tory HQ with a banner attacking Douglas Hogg, then Agriculture Minister.

He also handled some of James Goldsmith's candidates in the Referendum party. "I may vote Tory. I don't know," he said. His political past was irrelevant to his work with the Paddington group, he insists.

He attended the meeting with Pam Warren, leader of the Paddington group, at which Stephen Byers is alleged to have given the clear hint that he had decided to put Railtrack into receivership.

When Ms Warren disclosed their conversation, Mr Corry ran a check on her group's political affiliations.

Mr Minns confirms the remark was made by Mr Byers but denies he suggested using it for political purposes. He was no longer acting for the group when Ms Warren disclosed the remark.