I want to pursue a political agenda about making sure we deliver for the people of Scotland

John Swinney, SNP leader

A spokesman for Mr McLetchie confirmed on Monday that he would be standing.

Mr Swinney said on Monday: "There has been no contest so far so we will have a contest on Thursday.

"And it will be a contest based on who has the best ideas for taking Scotland forward."

He added that Labour had come through "a few miserable weeks, miserable months, miserable years" with an attachment to a crony culture in Scotland.

Call for PR

Mr Swinney said: "I want to bring forward a candidacy to tackle that crony culture and tackle the need to clean up Scottish politics and restore public confidence.

"I also want to pursue a political agenda about making sure we deliver for the people of Scotland."

It will be Dennis Canavan's second first minister contest

He called on Mr McConnell to deliver proportional representation voting in local elections by 2003, and to support a bill by nationalist MSP Alex Neil giving parliament a greater role in quango appointments.

Mr Swinney described PR in local elections as "absolutely fundamental" for opening up what he claimed were long-standing local Labour one-party municipal states.

Mr McConnell is due to meet Liberal Democrat MSPs on Tuesday, ahead of Thursday's vote in Parliament on the post of first minister.

And Mr Swinney said: "I think the Liberal Democrats are in danger of becoming tainted by the same degree of cronyism, the same degree of unwillingness to open democratic scrutiny, because they won't put PR top of the political agenda."