The SNP has accused Labour of "blatant electioneering" by bringing Prime Minister Tony Blair to the Scottish Parliament a week before the Ayr by-election.

Nicola Sturgeon MSP called for the visit to be postponed until after the by-election, due to take place on March 16.

Ms Sturgeon said: "Labour are clearly rattled about the Ayr by-election. After all they had a disastrous result in Wales only last week.

"But it is not acceptable for Tony Blair to use the Scottish parliament as his political plaything and use it as a platform for electioneering.

"The people of Scotland would be appalled if they thought he was doing that."

Mr Blair is due to address the parliament on March 9, having had an open invitation to do so since it opened.

Formal request

The date was proposed by Lord Steel, the parliament's presiding officer, to tie in with Mr Blair's appearance at the Scottish Labour Party conference in Edinburgh the following day.

According to the Sunday Times, Mike Russell, the SNP's business manager, will formally ask for the visit to be postponed from its proposed March 9 date until after the by-election on March 16.

Ms Sturgeon added: "I think if the visit is postponed until after the by-election, Tony Blair will not leave himself open to allegations of electioneering.

"If it is postponed, I'm sure he'd be welcomed in Scotland and not accused of abusing the parliament."

The SNP's objection is likely to fall on deaf ears however, as the Scottish Conservatives are in favour of the Mr Blair's visit, leaving the SNP outnumbered if it comes down to a vote.

The Ayr by-election is seen as a litmus test by all parties, given that it is the first since the opening of the Scottish Parliament.

The marginal seat was won by 25 votes by Labour from the Conservatives. The sitting MSP, Ian Welsh, resigned in December, saying he was spending too much time away from his family