FORMER Euro MP Mo O'Toole has won the backing of a key trade union in her fight to become Labour's candidate for the Parliamentary seat of Bishop Auckland.

At a meeting in Gateshead on Wednesday night, the North-East branch of Amicus endorsed Ms O'Toole as its preferred candidate for the seat, which will fall vacant at the General Election following the retirement of veteran Labour MP Derek Foster.

The decision will be considered a blow to the chances of Downing Street special advisor Liz Lloyd, who is known to have joined Amicus only last week and is understood to have attended Wednesday's meeting, where she was also seeking the endorsement of the union.

Following the decision, Darlington councillor and Amicus member Lee Vasey yesterday withdrew her candidacy in support of Ms O'Toole.

Coun Vasey said: "I wasn't successful in getting the nomination from my union so I feel honour-bound to withdraw from the election.

"They have made their choice and you do not stand against the candidate that your own union puts forward.

"I am now 100 per cent behind Mo O'Toole - she is a lovely person, she has a great track record in the European Parliament and I think she would make an excellent MP for Bishop Auckland."

It is understood that 15 people have expressed an interest in becoming Labour's candidate for the seat ahead of the closure of nominations today, but it appears increasingly as if the contest is turning into a two-way fight between Ms O'Toole, the former wife of Labour's election supremo Alan Milburn, who served for five years as MEP for the North-East, versus Ms Lloyd, who has been a senior advisor to Tony Blair for more than ten years, both in Downing Street and in Opposition.

A four-person shortlisting panel, made up of three members of Labour's National Executive Committee and one member of the Bishop Auckland Constituency Labour Party, will draw up a shortlist after interviewing candidates at a meeting in Gosforth tomorrow.

The final decision on the candidate for the safe Labour seat, which commands a majority of almost 14,000, will be made by the 450 members of the constituency party at a hustings meeting next weekend.