Ed Balls gave a clear hint that he would stand for the Labour leadership today but warned that the party should not be railroaded into selecting Gordon Brown's successor.
The former schools secretary broke his silence amid worries among some backbenchers that David Miliband's lightning-quick campaign risked bouncing the party into a hasty contest.
As the former foreign secretary began his tour of areas Labour lost in the election, Mr Balls revealed that he was "obviously talking to people" about a candidacy and the lessons to be learned from the party's defeat.
"But I am not going to jump to any quick conclusions. I think the pretty strong message from the Parliamentary Labour Party is they want to make sure that we talk about what's happened in the election last week. I'm going to take that very seriously and talk to people in the Parliamentary party and the wider Labour party in the country too. I'll decide in due course. I think the party want a proper debate in the weeks and months to come."
Mr Balls's key ally Tom Watson today urged the party to "slow down, be calm and think". He said the September conference should be used to select the leader, possibly with a live TV debate.
The remarks, which suggest Mr Balls will also do a national tour, tally with the view of fellow expected contender Ed Miliband, who is also testing the waters for a leadership bid.
David Miliband said he had discussed with younger brother Ed the idea of them both standing. "The most important thing for both of us is that the family remains strong and I'm absolutely confident that that's going to happen, whatever my brother decides."
Labour's ruling National Executive Committee meets next week to decide the timetable for the contest. Under acting leader Harriet Harman, it has to work out whether to fast-track the process and get a leader in place before the summer recess or wait until its annual conference in September.
Former justice secretary Jack Straw ruled himself out of the race. He said he was standing down from the shadow cabinet after 23 years on the front bench, adding the party lost the election because it failed to crack down on immigration and welfare.
