Is a by-election in the offing?
Are we in the build-up to the first by-election of the 2010 Parliament? My spies tell me that the city of Leicester is soon to opt for an elected mayor.
And if they do, a prime candidate for the job - in a usually-Labour city - would be the MP for Leicester South, . He was leader of the Council back in the 1980s and early 1990s for a total of 17 years. He fought and lost a by-election for his current seat in July 2004, and then won it in the 2005 General Election.
Sir Peter's never really given the impression of enjoying life as a backbencher - and I'm betting he won't be able to resist the lure of a mayoral role in his home city - although such are the delights of Leicester's faction-ridden Labour politics, that his selection as a candidate may not be a done deal.
But if he does win his party's candidacy, and ultimately the job, that would mean another Leicester South by-election. Last May, Sir Peter increased Labour's share of the vote - so it may not be a particularly awkward by-election for Ed Miliband and Labour. Indeed it may be seen as an opportunity to install a favoured Ed-ite in the Commons.
Meanwhile, given the precedent in Hartlepool where , the local football club mascot, aka Stuart Drummond is now in his second term as mayor, Sir Peter should beware of any sign of political ambition on the part of Leicester City's Filbert the Fox.
I'm Mark D'Arcy and I'll be writing about what goes on in the chambers and committee rooms at Westminster.
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