Oxford East MP Andrew Smith is refusing to take sides in the split between his local Labour Party and Prime Minister Tony Blair.

The Oxford Mail caught up with the former Government minister as he was out meeting constituents in Headington on Saturday (Nov 20), and challenged him about the Oxford Labour Party's motion demanding Mr Blair's resignation.

But he remained tight-lipped and declined to comment on whether he wholeheartedly backed the Prime Minister.

The MP left the Cabinet as Work and Pensions Secretary in September. He told the Mail: "You are inviting me to add speculation to the story. I have nothing to add to what has already been reported. I absolutely stand by everything I said when I resigned from the Cabinet."

The resignation call was voted through by 16 to 11 at a meeting attended by members of Labour's Oxford East and Oxford West and Abingdon constituencies.

The motion was passed on the back of a claim Mr Blair failed to acknowledge he was wrong to take the UK into the Iraq war - and his insistence on keeping UK troops in Iraq despite calls for their withdrawal.

Today (Monday, Nov 22) Oxford Green group leader and city councillor, Craig Simmons, was tabling a motion calling for Mr Blair to be impeached.

He was to ask city councillors to vote on whether Oxford should add its name to the list of cities that have already called for Mr Blair's impeachment, for chief executive Caroline Bull to write to the Prime Minister stating the city's position and request local MPs support parliamentary moves towards im- peachment.

In his resignation letter Mr Smith said: "I have chosen to leave the Government to devote more time to the responsibilities I enjoy in my constituency and to my family.

"From the backbenches I will, as always, continue to support you and the Government in carrying forward Labour's programme for social justice, a strong economy and opportunity for all."

Mr Smith's opponents said he quit the Government because he was "running scared" of losing his Oxford East seat at the next election.

Steve Goddard, who will stand as the Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate for Oxford East at the General Election, has called for Mr Smith to state publicly whether he thinks Mr Blair should resign. He said: "It's very hard to know what Labour stands for in Oxford nowadays."

Veteran Labour councillor John Tanner said last week: "I would not want to comment on the internal workings of the Labour Party."

But he added: "My view of Tony Blair is that he is now a liability and Labour would do better in the General Election without him."