The Labour Party is to investigate the actions of George Galloway following newspaper revelations about his links to Saddam Hussein.

The probe, to be conducted by the party's executive committee, came after the Kelvin MP strenuously denied receiving as much as £375,000 from the Iraqi regime.

Party chairman Ian McCartney said the newspaper allegations levelled against the controversial MP were "extremely serious".

The Telegraph claimed that a confidential Iraqi memorandum showed that Galloway had asked an agent for a greater cut of funds raised from exports under the oil-for-food programme.

According to the newspaper, the documents reveal that the Glasgow Kelvin MP received around £375,000 a year from the oil revenues.

Galloway insisted the documents were either forged or doctored.

He said they were designed to discredit him following his opposition to the war against Saddam.

Galloway said the Telegraph report was libellous and vowed to sue the newspaper.

"I have never solicited nor received money from Iraq for our campaign against war and sanctions," he said.

"I have never seen a barrel of oil, never owned one, never bought one, never sold one."

He added that claims he had met with Iraqi intelligence officials were incorrect "to the best of my knowledge".

"Given that I have had access over the years to Iraq's political leadership, most often the deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz, I would have absolutely no reason to be meeting with an official of Iraqi intelligence," he said.

Labour's high command moved swiftly to distance the party from Galloway.

McCartney said the ruling NEC would be asked to consider the claims.

"The allegations are extremely serious. I understand George Galloway has denied these allegations and obviously I cannot comment any further," he said.

"The general secretary will consider all these issues arising from this and will come forward with recommendations to the NEC."

Galloway said he had not yet seen the documents because he was out of the country.

But he was confident that they were forgeries designed to discredit him over his stance on Iraq.

"From the way they have been described to me, I can state that they bear all the hallmarks of having been either forged or doctored and are designed to discredit those who stood against the war," he insisted.

They were part of what he described as a "smear campaign against those who stood against the illegal and bloody war on Iraq and against its occupation by foreign forces".

Already threatened with expulsion from the Labour Party over his vocal opposition to war, the left winger added that the timing of the reports was cause for concern.

"The idea that such documents have, as if to order, come to light just days after the massive assault on Baghdad, the looting and destruction of its ministries and government buildings and the chaos in the country, must be treated as highly suspect," he said.