Ed Balls wants to be Chancellor shocker

ED Balls has all but laid to rest any doubt over what job he wants after admitting to Lobbydog that he would “love to be Chancellor”.

His comments were made as New Labour leader Ed Miliband weighs up which leading figures in the party should take up which key positions.

He’s thought to be considering his brother David for the role of Chancellor, but there is still doubt over whether the defeated leadership candidate will remain in front line politics.

Meanwhile Mr Balls – widely considered to have best articulated Labour’s argument against Government cuts – is also a leading contender for the job.

When I asked him if he would confirm whether he wanted to be shadow chancellor Mr Balls was cagey. But asked whether he would want to be Chancellor, he was not so shy.

“Chancellor, I’d love to be chancellor. The question is whether I want to be shadow chancellor. Of course I’d like to be chancellor but at some point in the future – but in terms of the shadow cabinet decisions those have got to be for the leader.”

When nominations for Labour’s shadow cabinet ballot close tomorrow Balls will know whether David Miliband is sticking around, and whether his main rival for the job is out of the way.