Ed Miliband: my critics know I've got the right stuff to be PM

Ed Miliband has admitted his "mettle" was tested by reports that some of his colleagues don't want him to lead Labour into the next general election - and promised to tackle "vested interests" and banks.

The Opposition leader spoke last night to the BBC - and today addressed students at the University of London, pledging to tackle what he has dubbed the "zero-zero economy".

Talking to Nick Robinson, Miliband admitted his "mettle had been tested" by media reports that senior Labour figures wanted him to step aside but said: "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

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He told Robinson he "absolutely" sees a future Prime Minister when he looks in the mirror in the morning - and said his critics know full well he is capable of leading the party to victory in 2015.

Speaking in London today, Miliband outlined his "zero-zero economy" theme, The Guardian reports. In a speech quickly hailed as a "fight back", he said the poor are struggling with zero-hours contracts while the rich "get away with zero tax".

He Labour would tackle the "powerful forces" and "vested interests" including banks who want to keep things that way. He said it was the party's duty "not to shrink from the fight, not to buckle under the pressure but to win".

Miliband also turned on Ukip, saying it was natural to feel a sense of longing for the past but asserting: "Mr Farage, you may want to live in that world but come the general election, I don't believe the British people will follow."

He added that Labour would be "talking more about immigration as a party" in the future but insisted it would be "on the basis of Labour values, not Ukip values". He said that Ukip secretly wanted to privatise the NHS.