LABOUR'S last Worcester parliamentary candidate can today be revealed as the party's June 8 General Election hopeful - after she changed her mind.

Councillor Joy Squires says she has been "completely taken back" by the volume of people asking her to contest the snap poll.

The politician has now done a u-turn and has put her name forward, where she will take on current Conservative MP Robin Walker in a repeat of the 2015 contest.

Last week Cllr Squires told the Worcester News she would not be standing in June, saying she would give "full support" to a new candidate.

But Labour's decision-making National Executive Committee (NEC) has since ordered its regional offices to ask 2015 candidates if they want to stand again, giving them the rights to 'automatic re-selection' unless they say no.

Cllr Squires says she has been taken aback by the public response since we ran our first story, as well as from fellow Labour members and her family, leading to her change of tack.

Today, she said: "I am pleased to say that I am putting my name forward to be Labour's candidate in Worcester at the General Election.

"I have been completely taken aback by the number of local people who have contacted me asking me to stand again and pledging their support.

"I have also had fantastic encouragement from friends, family and Labour members who have asked me to stand again.

"Given the snap nature of this election, I simply couldn’t refuse."

The politician, who is current deputy leader of Worcester City Council, has also taken a swipe at the Conservatives.

"This election is a clear choice between a Labour Party who will stand up for Worcester and a Tory Party who are failing working people here," she said.

But Mr Walker, who defeated her with an increased majority of 5,646 in 2015, said: "She won't be writing the Labour Party manifesto, Jeremy Corbyn will and that is their handicap.

"I really enjoyed debating with Joy two years ago, she is a strong local councillor and I look forward to doing so again.

"She is a much more sensible candidate than their leader Jeremy Corbyn who is out of touch with local people, that's their problem."

Worcester is a 'bellwether seat' with huge national significance - it was 1974 the last time one party won Worcester but wasn't able to form a Government.

Labour's selection process has been overseen by regional offices without a vote taking place among local party members, due to the shortage of time between now and June, under the party's emergency snap election procedures.