Amicus in "rigging" claim

Britain's second largest union, manufacturing and professional union Amicus, is in the midst of an investigation over claims that "Blairite" candidates for its important new executive were being given unfair advantage.

Joint general secretary Derek Simpson is leading the inquiry into allegations that his co-leader, Roger Lyons, used the journal of Amicus-MSF to boost the chances of candidates from the "MSF for Labour" group. Members on the left of the union claim that only candidates which they describe as New Labour were named or pictured.