Big shots call for 'new Labour army'

Two shadow Cabinet ministers will call today for an Obama-style rejuvenation of the Labour campaign machine in an effort to restore its fortunes.

Peter Hain, above, who is in charge of party reform, will set out plans to recruit an "army" of tens of thousands of "registered" Labour supporters. They would not be full members of the party, but part of a grassroots movement similar to that which propelled Barack Obama to victory in 2008.

The shadow Education Secretary, Andy Burnham, says Labour must re-establish its role as "part of the social infrastructure".