Simon Danczuk has lambasted the Labour leader Ed Miliband

Ed Miliband is a 'f****** knob' who costs Labour votes, according to one of his own MPs.

Outspoken backbencher Simon Danczuk said the Labour leader was seen as more of a 'toff' than David Cameron because he was too 'aloof' from voters' everyday lives.

Ordinary people would rather go for a pint with the Prime Minister than the Labour leader - and any MP who said otherwise was 'telling lies', Mr Danczuk said.

He said: 'I spend four hours knocking on doors on a Sunday – they [constituents] say things like 'you're doing an alright job as MP but I don't want Ed Miliband as Prime Minister, so I won't vote for you'.'

Mr Danczuk's bombshell remarks come just 45 days before the general election – and less than two weeks before the official campaign kicks off.

The Labour backbencher tore into Mr Miliband for failing to connect with voters outside London and lambasted his decision to apologise for posing with a copy of the Sun newspaper.

He said the public couldn't understand the Labour leader's decision to pose for a picture holding the Sun – while also claiming he had been right to apologise after the image sparked fury on Merseyside.

Mr Danczuk said: 'It's that sort of double speak from politicians: How could he be right on both counts? That turns people off politics.

'So when somebody hears a politician say that, you know what they think, if you pardon the language: 'What a f****** knob'. That's the reality of it.'

Mr Danczuk also blasted Labour's deputy leader Harriet Harman for the same 'double speak'.

The Labour backbencher said Mr Miliband was harming his chances of re-election. Mr Danczuk only won his seat by 889 votes in 2010, narrowly defeating the Liberal Democrat candidate Paul Rowen.

Voters would prefer to go for a pint with the Prime Minister than the Labour leader - pictured in Scotland today - and any MP who said otherwise was 'telling lies', Simon Danczuk said

Mr Miliband delivered a speech to activists in Clydebank, Scotland, today as the party's struggles north of the border continue - with the latest polls showing a landslide victory for the SNP in May

SIMON DANCZUK: LABOUR'S OUTSPOKEN ATTACK DOG Simon Danczuk was only elected in 2010 but has already established himself as one of Parliament's most prominent backbench MPs. The Rochdale MP led the campaign to expose historic child sexual abuse - revealing in shocking detail the crimes of his paedophile predecessor, Cyril Smith. But Mr Danczuk has also launched a series of attacks on his own party - including over immigration, benefits and the lack of working class MPs. He even criticised his own mother for relying on welfare and revealed he had taken drugs. His profile has also been enhanced by his wife Karen, who has risen to fame after posting a series of provocative selfies on Twitter. Advertisement

He said: 'You get it on the doorstep. If we're having a straight conversation about this, he [Miliband] has an image of being more of a toff than David Cameron. That's how the public see it.

'And what they mean by that is that he's seen as more aloof. They'd prefer to go for a pint with David Cameron than they would with Ed Miliband, that's the reality of it.'

Mr Danczuk said if the Labour Party knew the cost of electing Mr Miliband in September 2010 they would have chosen another leader.

This scathing criticism, in an interview with the New Statesman, comes amid growing concern in the party over Labour's chances in the election in May.

But Mr Danczuk said the Labour Party could be in trouble for years to come.

He said: 'I do think the party has almost been hijacked by what I've described previously as a north London liberal elite. It's just so disconnected.

'I think Labour has a real problem if they don't realign themselves actually, after the general election. If they don't start thinking afresh about how they approach politics and how they involve people at a community level.'

Mr Danczuk added: 'You know, this north London elite view of the world, just doesn't play in Rochdale, Rotherham, Runcorn or anywhere else beginning with an 'r' outside the M25.

'We should be winning Rugby shouldn't we? Why aren't we winning Rugby – we won't win Rugby. Why won't we win Rugby? It's ridiculous.

'So you can't, as leader, just do set piece speeches for three years – hidden behind a lectern – and hope that gets on the 10 o'clock news and convinces loads of people to vote Labour.'

The infamous Gillian Duffy (right) - accused by the former prime minister Gordon Brown of being a 'bigoted women' - opens the new office of Labour MP Simon Danczuk (left) in Rochdale in 2010

The Labour MP used Twitter to insist he had had a 'very difficult day' and was 'feeling emotional' about the election

Mr Danczuk said voters were also unenthusiastic about the Prime Minister David Cameron and insisted he wanted Ed Miliband to win the election

He said he was trying to get across the need for more working-class politicians in positions of power

Conservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps MP said Mr Danczuk's remarks showed even Labour MPs knew Mr Miliband 'just isn’t up to the job'.

He said: ‘He is a weak leader who it utterly out of touch with the lives and concerns of hardworking taxpayers.

‘Not only is Ed Miliband ‘aloof’, his short-term gimmicks would cause chaos and damage the economic security upon which British families depend.’

But Mr Danczuk later tried to clarify his remarks - insisting that he wanted Mr Miliband to be the next Prime Minister.