Morley and Outwood Labour MP Ed Balls has been named as the new shadow chancellor following the resignation of Alan Johnson this afternoon.
In a statement issued at 5pm, former home secretary Johnson said that he needed to resign to concentrate on his family. Follow the story over at The Guardian.
Balls has issued the following statement:
"It is a great honour to be appointed to this post, and to succeed my friend and colleague Alan Johnson whose commitment to social justice and service to the Labour Party is second to none.
"Over the past few months, Alan and Ed [Miliband] have set out a clear direction on economic policy and challenged the Conservative-led Government's false claim that our investment in schools, hospitals and police, rather than the global financial crisis, caused the deficit.
"Our task ahead is to take on George Osborne and David Cameron's decision to cut too far and too fast, recklessly putting jobs and growth at risk. We will hold them to account for the decisions they have taken, fromraising VAT to scrapping the Future Jobs Fund and education maintenance allowances.
"We will set out to the public that there is an alternative: a fair economy which puts jobs and growth first.
"I look forward to taking on and winning this argument."
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