The Labour Party candidate selection process in Ashton Under-Lyme very nearly descended into all out war last month, with accusations flying of dirty tricks to get trade union pilgrim Angela Rayner selected. Unison heavies, with the help of senior Labour MPs like Andrew ‘shouty’ Gwynne, won in the end, but that is not to say that the local tension has gone away. In fact it’s getting very messy:

A leaflet pretending to be from Rayner has been posted through doors in the constituency. It shows the self-styled ‘care worker’ snorting sambuca through her nose using a hospital feeding tube, whilst she denies having a drink problem. Guido understands however that the photos are genuine. Sources on the ground say an element of the local party is out to get Rayner at all costs and it looks to Guido like this could get very dirty.