FORMER Labour leader and Blaenau Gwent MP Michael Foot is backing his old constituency's right to choose a male parliamentary candidate.

His comments follow the Welsh Labour Party executive's decision to impose an all-women shortlist on the constituency when they choose their next parliamentary candidate.

On Wednesday Llew Smith, the MP who is standing down at the next election, Blaenau Gwent Assembly Member Peter Law and senior members of the constituency part said they would boycott a selection process that used an all-women list.

Mr Foot, who celebrated his 90th birthday last week, told the Argus: "I believe in equality and I think the people of Blaenau Gwent should be able to choose any candidate.

"Of course I think that women should have equal representation but we must trust the constituency party, they've done all right in the past haven't they?"

The Labour Party say that all-women shortlists have been approved by numerous conferences to increase female MPs in Wales, which at the moment only account for 10 per cent.

Mr Law told the Argus that the constituency's campaign against the all-women shortlists was going well and that a petition had already been signed by thousands of people.

It will be presented to the Labour Party national exectuive this week.

The campaign was following a phased approach, Mr Law added.

"First we sent a letter and then we organised the petition.

"Then we gave notice of the boycott and a total lack of cooperation with the election campaign," he said.

"We will also be discussing our future plans if they do not see sense and drop this positive discrimination."

Mr Law added that the campaign had attracted a lot of support in the county borough.

"People do not like being dictated to. When they say you can only have one gender on the shortlist it is like Big Brother and very sinister."