Tony Woodley, the former general secretary of the Unite union, has denied he wants to be made a member of the House of Lords.

HuffPost UK reported on Thursday that Woodley was among those Jeremy Corbyn was considering nominating for a peerage.

However a Unite spokesperson said today Woodley would not accept a peerage if offered.

“I would like to make it clear that I am not seeking nomination to the House of Lords and that these media reports are wholly inaccurate,” Woodley added.

It is understood that the Labour leadership has also considered nominating former councillor Martha Osamor and ex-London Assembly member Murad Qureshi – who chairs the Stop the War Coalition – for seats in the Lords.

Theresa May is expected to appoint a raft of between 12 and 15 new Tory peers in coming days.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which props up May’s minority government, is also expected to get one or two peers of its own.

The independent House of Lords Appointments Commission is working on nominations from all parties and Downing Street is poised to make an announcement as early as next week.

Corbyn has previously been opposed to appointing new Labour peers given his opposition to the unelected chamber.

However the party would feel it necessary to increase its numbers if it is to keep pace with the Conservatives.

The Lords currently has an anti-Tory majority, with Labour, Lib Dem and crossbench peers outnumbering the Government.