Prescott 'urged Blair to sack Brown'

John Prescott has said he had told Tony Blair to sack Gordon Brown as chancellor.

In his autobiography, serialised in The Sunday Times, the former deputy prime minister said he had brokered "hundreds" of reconciliation meetings and phone calls to deal with "Blair-Brown issues".

He described Brown as "annoying, bewildering and prickly" and said that Blair was "scared" of his chancellor.

The former prime minister had reneged on several promises to make way for Brown at Number 10, Prescott claimed.

"He was definitely going in, er, six months, perhaps a year, certainly before the next election.

"When it never happened, Gordon was furious and the whole cycle began again," he said.

He added: "With Tony, when he was moaning on about Gordon's behaviour, I'd say 'sack him. Find a new chancellor if that's how you really feel.' But neither could take the final step."

Prescott said that Brown had held back government money from some of Blair's projects so he would have more to spend when he finally became prime minister.

He also praised the "beautiful people" around Blair and Brown, commending foreign secretary David Miliband and describing children's secretary Ed Balls as "clearly highly intelligent".