Lord Prescott seeks Humberside police commissioner job

The former deputy prime minister Lord Prescott is to seek a nomination to become Police and Crime Commissioner for Humberside Police.

According to his Twitter account, the former Labour Hull East MP said he was seeking a nomination from the Labour party, for the role on 17 February.

And the Labour leader Ed Miliband has backed the 73-year-old's campaign.

Police commissioners in England and Wales will be elected in November this year.

In an interview for the Sunday Politics in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, Mr Miliband said: "As always in these things, we are going to have a vote in the Labour Party as to who the best candidates are for police commissioner but John Prescott is an unstoppable force and I'm sure he'd be a great police commissioner."

'Strong battle'

Lord Prescott said he considered himself eminently qualified for the role.

Speaking to BBC News he said: "Well, I'm a public servant of 40 years and in London I've been involved in dealing with terrorist operations, working with the police, COBRA operations and I think I've got more experience than any candidate likely to be standing.

"I've a good idea of police accountability, I've just gone through a very strong battle with the Metropolitan Police and the Murdoch press and we've seen there the relationship needs to be improved.

"I no longer want to see 'business as usual'.

"I usually get on with what I want to do."

In an interview with the Hull Daily Mail, he said that if he received the Labour nomination he would go on a tour of East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire to speak to the public about their concerns, using their answers to help him draft his manifesto.

The role of commissioner includes setting priorities for a police force and overseeing its budget.