Today’s Guardian:

Andrew Smith, the soft-spoken and uncharismatic former work and pensions secretary, is not normally the type to be cast as the assassin, even if he represents the rougher eastern end of Oxford.

But yesterday he became the most serious figure inside the parliamentary party to call on Tony Blair to stand aside. Mr Smith, who was in the cabinet for five years until 2004, is extremely close to Gordon Brown and has so far remained publicly loyal to Mr Blair. [...]

The words from Mr Smith are unmistakable in intent. He told the Guardian: “I have spent hours and hours on the doorstep, many of them previous loyal Labour voters saying ‘not this time’. And it is not just because of recent events - obviously they have an impact. The difference is there is a weakness of trust, a trust that in the past has seen the government through the difficult times. There is a feeling that people feel let down.

“It is absolutely clear that we need to rebuild for the future, not just up to the next election, but where we go over the next 10 years, how we translate our values to polices. And I believe we cannot get on with that process of rebuilding while the leadership issue is in the air. The prime minister has promised an orderly transition and I believe we need to see the timetable for that sooner rather than later. I think that is in the interests of the country as well as the party.”

Asked what sooner or later meant, Mr Smith said “as soon as possible”, rejecting the suggestion that Mr Blair could wait until the annual party conference in Manchester in October.

“What is gained by waiting? The sooner Labour MPs know where they are, the issue of uncertainty can be got out of the way. The uncertainty gets worse with every month that passes. It reinforces that lack of trust. The cabinet reshuffle, for instance, raises the question ‘is this an indication of how long he intends to go on?’ There is is an impatience out there on the doorstep to know where we are.”

Mr Smith continued: “You cannot put the problems down to issues like John Prescott any more than you can solve it by a reshuffle. The problem also lies in Tony Blair. Many Labour voters looked me in the eye and said as much.”

I’m really glad that my MP has finally used his former position and status in the party to make this point.