SPOOKED Blairites demanding a halt to the Labour leadership contest to allow a probe into entryism were branded hypocrites yesterday.

Non-party members are allowed to sign up and vote as supporters under new rules introduced under Ed Miliband in the hope of diluting union influence.

But MP John Mann claimed in the Murdoch-owned Sunday Times that the process was “completely out of control” amid claims that ultra-left groups were exploiting the new rules.

He demanded that interim leader Harriet Harman immediately suspend the contest.

Longstanding Labour leftwingers hit back to remind Mr Mann that it was the Progress faction that had led the campaign for the rule change in order to shut out working people.

And activists confronted the Bassetlaw MP with a July 2013 article he wrote in the wake of the Falkirk farrago in which he advocated using primaries to select MPs.

A Campaign for Labour Party Democracy spokesman told the Star: “It’s a bit of a cheek criticism coming from people who advocated primaries in the first place.

“Progress were the only people that wanted it.

“It’s important to say that these are the rules at the moment and you can’t change things mid-election because you don’t like who’s winning.”

Bookies’ favourite Andy Burnham also dismissed Mr Mann’s call, saying he did not believe there was “wide-scale” infiltration.

“If John has evidence, then he needs to send it to the Labour Party, but we’re in the middle of a debate that is actually now finally capturing attention and I think that’s a good thing,” he told Sky News.