A row over his employment contract has prompted NUT chief Doug McAvoy to launch a bitter attack on members of his own executive.

The row centres on the detailed timetable for the election of new head of the National Union of Teachers.

A committee of the union will set the timetable, before it is approved by the union's national executive.

In an unusual personal statement, McAvoy said that union rules require that his term of office should last for five years.

However, the proposed timetable "would result in my being dismissed from office...almost five months earlier than my contract requires" said the general secretary.

Raising the stakes ahead of a key committee meeting, the union chief threatened to take the issue to the membership by standing again as a candidate so that he can hold the post of general secretary for the full five years.

McAvoy blamed a "political faction within the executive" for the attempt to dismiss him before the end of his contract.

"The political faction promoting this is doing so to enhance the electoral chances of their candidate, Steve Sinnott," he claimed.

"I am angry and hurt that a political faction within the executive should seek to terminate my contract as general secretary earlier than determined by the membership"

The NUT chief also said that by enhancing the candidature of Sinnott, the other declared candidates - John Illingworth and John Bangs - would be disadvantaged.

"The effect will be to deny John Illingworth the opportunity to gain support from speaking in debates at next year's annual conference. It will curtail the campaigning time available to John Bangs who as the only independent candidate needs that time to build his campaign and promote his candidature," claimed McAvoy.

"The proposed timetable positions the election of the [general secretary] between other elections, that of the national officers and those for the national executive.

"The political faction will have a slate of candidates in each of the elections and will hope to create a bandwagon. They certainly will promote their candidate as part of their overall political slate.

"If any governing body or education authority sought to terminate the contract of a teacher in this way, the NUT would be outraged and offer full support to that teacher."