Ed Miliband, who led the Labour Party from 2010-15, announced his resignation on the morning of his own general election defeat

The former Labour leader Ed Miliband has been accused of “breathtaking arrogance” after putting himself forward to run a review of the party’s heaviest general election defeat since 1935.

A panel of “commissioners”, including Mr Miliband’s former chief of staff Lucy Powell, is due to hear evidence from defeated MPs as well as candidates, councillors and activists. It will hold public focus groups in the heartland seats that Labour lost this month.

The move to set up the commission without widely consulting Labour MPs has infuriated many within the party who accuse Mr Miliband of failing to learn from 2015, when he led Labour to a loss of 26 seats at the general election then quit the morning after polling day.

“The party simply doesn’t