Prescott urged to stay on until after election

Cabinet colleagues are urging John Prescott to stay on as Deputy Prime Minister under Gordon Brown until after the next general election. They fear that if he leaves office sooner, the contest for his job could turn into a damaging "surrogate" battle over the Government's future direction.

It now appears almost certain that Mr Brown will move into 10 Downing Street when Tony Blair decides to move out, easily beating any left-wing MP who decides to stand.

When Mr Blair was considering pulling out before the last general election, a number of his cabinet colleagues, including Charles Clarke, John Reid and Peter Hain, pleaded with him to stay. It is thought likely that if Mr Prescott were to resign on the same day as Mr Blair, at least one of that trio would contest the deputy leadership in what would be interpreted as a bid to limit Mr Brown's authority.

The probable winner of a delayed deputy leadership contest would be Alan Johnson, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. Mr Johnson's experience as a union leader could make him difficult to beat.

Mr Reid, the Defence Secretary, had been seen as the cabinet minister most likely to run against Mr Brown, but he virtually ruled himself out when he told the BBC that "whoever becomes leader after Tony Blair will be committed to New Labour".