Tessa Jowell Hints At London Mayor Contest

Dame Tessa Jowell, who is widely credited with bringing the 2012 Olympics to London, has fuelled speculation that she is preparing to join the race to become London Mayor.

The former Culture Secretary revealed on Thursday she is stepping down as an MP at the next election.

In a letter to her Dulwich and West Norwood constituency party, Dame Tessa, 66, said quitting the south London seat was "the hardest decision I have ever taken".

It had been an "extraordinary privilege" to serve in government throughout the whole of Labour's three terms in office from 1997, she said.

"I know that you share with me a belief in the extraordinary responsibility of representation, the power of politics, the decency of politics and its capacity to make known, and put to use, the best of human nature," she told local activists.

"We also accept that the job is never done, but I feel that the time is now right, for the constituency definitely and for me probably, to give somebody else the chance to take the next steps forward."

Dame Tessa is credited with bringing the Olympics to London in 2012

But she left the door wide open to seeking a still more prominent role in the capital when Boris Johnson's current term in City Hall ends in 2016.

"It is really too early for anyone to be declaring themselves ahead of the local elections next year and the general election in 2015," she said.

"I love London and, of course, when the time comes will think hard about whether I should offer myself as a candidate."

The Labour stalwart's announcement of her decision to step down drew tributes from Tony Blair and Lord Coe who said she had been an "inseparable part" of the success of the Games.

Mr Blair, whose initial reluctance to bid for the 2012 games was overcome by Dame Tessa, said that as well as being an able and determined politician, she was "kind, decent and loyal in a way I have seldom seen in politics".

British Olympic Association chairman Sebastian Coe said she was the "political driving force" behind the 2012 bid and "an inseparable part of their ultimate success".

And Labour leader Ed Miliband, who kept her on as shadow Olympics minister after becoming leader in 2010, said that while the Olympics would be her "greatest legacy", she was a "unique politician" of warmth, spirit, loyalty and generosity.

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