A former Labour minister has accused Tony Blair of bad faith by failing to deliver on a pledge to ban fox hunting.

The outspoken former sports minister, Tony Banks, told GMTV that the prime minister and government's credibility was at stake if a hunting bill was not rapidly introduced to parliament.

"It is not the most important issue facing the government and the country, there are far more important events," he said. "But in a way it is becoming a test of the good will and credibility of the government."

The pledge to ban fox hunting - close to the hearts of many Labour supporters - was quickly becoming a test of good faith, said Banks.

Voters, he believes, will ask: "How can we test your good faith and do we really know that you actually say what you are going to do?"Speaking of "angry" people both in and outside parliament, Banks warned Blair that "the only test in politics that really matters is not what you have said but what you have actually done".