Ed Miliband In Fresh Crisis Over Leadership

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By Jason Farrell, Political Correspondent

Ed Miliband's leadership is under more pressure after reports that 20 shadow ministers are poised to call on him to quit.

Senior figures are ready to strike if former home secretary Alan Johnson signals he is prepared to step into the breach, according to The Observer.

The number of Labour MPs prepared to act has "reached a critical mass" but they want a coronation rather than a difficult leadership contest.

A senior figure told The Observer: "There are 20 frontbenchers who are actively considering what is best to do. They are from all areas of the party, bar the hard left."

Labour MPs have been told not to respond to journalistic polls and questions about the leadership - but one MP told Sky News: "I think it's time for him to go."

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Gallery: Sunday's National Newspaper Front Pages

The Observer claims at least 20 shadow ministers are on the brink of asking Ed Miliband to quit as Labour leader

More woes for Ed Miliband in the Sunday Times. A poll says only 34% of Labour voters believe he is up to the job of being PM

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Mr Miliband is under "massive pressure", reports the Mail. It says key ally Shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt has criticised his strategy

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The Independent on Sunday claims Jewish donors are moving away from "toxic" Ed Miliband and cancelling fundraisers because of the party's stance on Palestine

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Another said: "If there was even a whisper Johnson would stand things would shift very quickly."

The Observer reports a senior Labour MP saying: "It has reached critical mass now."

And another saying: "There are a significant number of frontbenchers who are concerned about Ed's leadership... If Alan indicated he would do it, there would be a massive move."

However, a spokesperson for Mr Miliband told Sky News the story was "ludicrous".

He said: "The Observer has got three unnamed people talking about 20 unnamed people, and this is the same paper that complained when the BBC ran a similar story based on two unnamed people. It is ludicrously bad journalism."

Video: Miliband Defies His Critics

Labour has also criticised the Mail on Sunday (MoS) after the shadow education secretary was forced to deny reports that he has been critical of Mr Miliband's efforts to rebrand himself.

The newspaper claimed Tristram Hunt told colleagues. "I never believed the answer to Labour's problems was to show people more of Ed Miliband. It has been a complete failure. It is making things worse, not better. Ed has excellent qualities but that is not the way to show them. It is absurd."

In response Mr Hunt tweeted: "MoS story is total nonsense. As I made clear in a full media round on Friday, Ed Miliband is the right person to lead Labour and Britain."

However, polls suggest a dramatic fall in support for Mr Miliband's leadership. Only 34% of Labour voters now think Mr Miliband is up to being party leader, compared to 51% last month, said a YouGov poll for the Sunday Times. The poll also found 45% of Labour voters think he should step down.

Much depends on Mr Johnson who has indicated he is not prepared to challenge for the job.

Video: 'Complete And Pure Fiction'

He told the Times on Saturday: "For the avoidance of doubt, I have no intention of going back to frontline politics."

In the past Mr Johnson has claimed he doesn't feel up to the job.

Thus far no named senior figure has made a deliberate move to come out in public criticism - and Mr Miliband's spokesman said he will continue focusing on "the big changes that are needed".

On Monday, the Labour leader will warn that David Cameron's approach to Europe is "dragging us closer to exit".

He is expected to say: "We have seen the rise of forces that want to drag us out of European Union and close us off from the world. These false solutions would be terrible for our country and terrible for your business, for those who work for you, and for Britain itself."

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