Labour facing defeat in marginals

Labour today entered the final phase of campaigning, facing a knife-edge battle in London's marginal seats.

The Evening Standard has learned that Labour strategists are braced to lose at least four seats in the capital.

Labour insiders accept they will struggle to hold the key marginals of Hammersmith and Fulham and Croydon Central. They also admit Oona King faces an uphill battle to prevent Respect's George Galloway taking Bethnal Green and Bow.

Other seats on the Labour casualty list include Hornchurch and Enfield North.

However, the Standard analysis shows that far from facing a whitewash, Labour's London losses are likely to be limited to a handful of seats.

The party is increasingly confident of holding Putney, Battersea and Wimbledon. Watford is also regarded as safe. However, it is in Labour's interest to talk up the closeness of the result in order to galvanise its core vote.

Ladbrokes has the party favourite to retain Bethnal Green and Bow and retake Brent East, Mayor Ken Livingstone's old seat, which the Lib-Dems won in a 2003 by-election. The bookies also put Labour neck-and-neck with the Tories in Putney and Croydon Central.

There is also little evidence that the much-hyped Lib-Dem challenges in Hornsey and Wood Green and Islington South are causing Labour palpitations.

Privately, the Tories are playing down their expectations. They believe Greg Hands should take Hammersmith and Fulham and Andrew Pelling is tipped to take Croydon Central. While the Lib-Dems remain favourite to take Orpington, it is not certain they will be able to "decapitate" Tory frontbencher Theresa May in Maidenhead. "It's all going to depend on the Labour tactical vote," said a senior Liberal Democrat.