Culture Secretary Chris Smith is temporarily in charge of the Millennium Dome after Mr Mandelson resigned from the government last month over a loan from Geoffrey Robinson to buy his luxury London home.

It is believed some members of Cabinet have already turned the job down on a permanent basis.

Names that remain in the running for the post include Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott and Lord Falconer, a minister of state in the Cabinet Office.

Mr Smith cannot take up the job on a permanent basis because he is also chairman of the Millennium Commission, which distributes National Lottery money to the multi-million-pound project.

{ Image 2}The Tories believe the project should be run by somebody outside government.

Shadow Culture Secretary Peter Ainsworth told BBC Radio 4's Today programme Mr Smith could be accountable for the overall project, but the dome needed someone at the helm for the day-to-day running.

'Golden news'

He said: "If the project is to gain credibility over the next crucial months, it really needs to be taken out of the political domain.

"The demise of the Peter Mandelson in his role as a member of the government, has been very helpful. It is the golden news the dome has been waiting for."

The dome urgently needs "somebody who can give it credibility outside politics" and could take it forward, said Mr Ainsworth.

He went on: "It is worrying with all the bickering in the government, the absence of a paymaster general and so on, the dome, perhaps, does not take the priority it needs.