Will McDonnell manage to get the 44 nominations?

After this afternoon’s announcement that Michael Meacher is standing aside to let John McDonnell run the big issue is whether he’ll get the required 44 nominations to be on the ballot alongside Brown.

He has until Thursday and will be helped, no doubt by his assured performance in last night’s debate.

He’ll also attract a fair degree of media attention in the coming days and my guess is that people are going to be surprised at the way he presents himself. He’s not a bad performer.

Whatever any confirmation that McDonnell is certain to run will see a big tightening in his betting price. Clearly his chances of beating Gordon are not great but his price will surely move in as speculation about the nomination numbers gathers pace.

Mike Smithson