Wendy Alexander yesterday insisted she would be cleared over an illegal donation to her Labour leadership campaign as speculation grew that the MSP who solicited the cash could be forced to quit.

Charlie Gordon, the Glasgow Cathcart MSP, said he would make a statement on his political future later this week.

Mr Gordon has resigned as Labour transport spokesman, but his position was further undermined yesterday when Paul Green, the Jersey-based tycoon who made the £950 donation, said it was "a mystery" why he had told Ms Alexander's campaign team the money had come from a Glasgow property firm.

Labour MSPs held their first group meeting yesterday since Mr Green's identity was revealed by The Herald and gave their embattled leader their support.

Speaking before the meeting, Ms Alexander said that, while mistakes had been made, she would not resign as leader because no intentional wrongdoing had been committed.

The Labour leader also said correspondence, believed to be between her and Mr Gordon in which she enquired about the permissibility of Mr Green's donation, would clear her name.

"I have no doubt that when the Electoral Commission looks at all the facts, I will be exonerated of any intentional wrongdoing," she said.

The SNP has accused Labour of using Ms Alexander as "a human shield" to protect Prime Minister Gordon Brown, whose own position is under scrutiny over illegal donations to Labour.

Ms Alexander said: "I have had one conversation with the Prime Minister and it was absolutely not the case that the Prime Minister said please, please, stay."

It also emerged Charlie Gordon had accepted money, again breaking electoral laws banning foreign donations, from Mr Green in the run-up to May's Holyrood elections.

Yesterday, Mr Gordon said: "I am not going to go into any detail of the two matters because of due process with the commission."

Speaking from Jersey yesterday, Mr Green said Labour was guilty of "gross mismanagement".

"The cheque was a personal cheque, it was accompanied by a personal letter from me, sent from my home address in Jersey and typed by one of my secretaries here in Jersey," he said.