Is Gareth Thomas planning on running to be London Mayor?

The next London mayoral contest is only a little over a year away. Although between now and then there’s the general election to think about, it’s been quite clear for a while now who will throw their name into the hat to be Labour’s candidate (and some already have): Tessa Jowell, Diane Abbott, David Lammy, Christian Wolmar and Sadiq Khan.

But it looks like there could be another name to add to that list. BuzzFeed have reported that Gareth Thomas, MP for Harrow West could join the race. Thomas is the former Minister for International Development and current Shadow Minister for Africa & the Middle East. He also serves as Shadow Deputy Minister for London, under Sadiq Khan.

Thomas didn’t confirm or deny these rumours when asked by BuzFeed, but made it clear that if he were to run, he wouldn’t announce his decision to do so until after the election:

“I’m concentrating on winning my seat again in Harrow West but I hope in the future to certainly contribute to the debate about London’s future.”

It’s also reported that if he were to run, he’d base his campaign around housing.