By Bruce Fegen

REPORTS THAT Prime Minister Gordon Brown is to mastermind the Glenrothes by-election for Labour have been dismissed by the party.

It was claimed in one newspaper yesterday that Mr Brown, the MP for the neighbouring Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath constituency, was effectively to take charge of the campaign to try to avoid defeat at the hands of the SNP, but this has been denied.

A Labour spokesman said, “We are not sure where this story came from but, as Prime Minister, Gordon will be focused on running the country and the party will be focused on running the by-election.”

Asked about Mr Brown’s visit to his constituency, the spokesman added, “It has been planned for some months that Gordon would do this once the Olympics were over.”

Nominations for the Labour candidate close at noon today and yesterday Lindsay Roy, head teacher at Kirkcaldy High School, threw his hat into the ring.

In a surprise move, Mr Roy, who was brought in from Inverkeithing High in February to turn around Gordon Brown’s old school after school inspectors gave it a poor report, announced his intention to seek the nomination.

A member of the Labour party since the 1970s, he has never held a political position and it’s felt by some insiders that a “fresh face” could be beneficial in the by-election which follows the death of John MacDougall.

Other names being talked about include Fife Labour councillors Mark Hood and Kay Morrison and list MSPs Claire Baker and John Park, although the Holyrood representatives are not believed to have put themselves forward.

Over the weekend, a list will be chosen, with those making the final stage invited to address the Glenrothes Labour Party on Monday night. The successful candidate will be announced later in the evening.

Fife Council leader Peter Grant has already been selected by the SNP, Morag Balfour is the Scottish Socialist candidate, Dr Kris Seunarine is the UKIP choice, while Harry Wills, who yesterday visited HCS Control Systems in Glenrothes with newly elected party leader Tavish Scott, will fight the seat for the Scottish Liberal Democrats.

Meanwhile, as pressure mounts on the Prime Minister to introduce a one-off energy windfall tax on power companies, Mr Grant said that action on energy costs was already a defining issue on the doorstep with voters and restated SNP calls for an action plan to protect hard pressed customers.

He said, “A one-off windfall tax would be a good first step to help struggling households with soaring energy prices, but that must be coupled with a long-term and sustainable plan.”