Gwyneth Dunwoody has pledged to fight any attempt by Labour whips to remove her from chairing the Commons transport committee.

Speaking to today's Telegraph, Dunwoody said: "You can take it from me I won't go quietly. There are some very good people on my committee and I am anxious that we should be allowed to continue our work."

The leader of the Commons, Robin Cook, confirmed yesterday that the committee would have to be reformed following the break up of the DTLR.

The current transport committee is a sub-committee of a larger DTLR committee.

The new committee will be bigger and Labour whips are said to be keen to pack it with loyalists who would be reluctant to support Dunwoody's anti-government approach.