THE Ulster Unionist party’s sole MP has said she supports Gordon Brown’s Labour leadership, in what amounts to a veiled criticism of her colleagues’ plans to merge with the Tories.

Sylvia Hermon’s statement makes it unlikely she could take the Conservative whip at Westminster.

“Gordon Brown has done terrifically well in handling [the banking] crisis and my confidence in him has been restored. He looks very much on top of things,” said Hermon, a member of an Ulster Unionists’ working group currently negotiating with the Tories.

Hermon, who generally votes with Labour in key Commons divisions, said Brown’s credibility had been boosted by his cabinet reshuffle.

She refused to comment on her attitude to the Tories until the working group reports later in the year. But friends say she is intent on contesting the next general election and is not planning to take the Conservative whip at Westminster. She is thought to be prepared to run even if a Tory candidate is fielded against her.

Last week the UUP postponed its annual conference, scheduled for October 25, which was to have been addressed by Tory leader David Cameron. The intention had been to announce a formal link-up between the two parties.

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