Gordon Brown said he would refuse to move aside even if senior Labour figures told him it would help the party retain seats at a general election, arguing that his focus was on tackling the recession and pushing through a programme of constitutional reform.
He said that he was determined to "clean up" the political system before the country went to the polls again while at the same time leading Britain out of recession.
"We have a duty before we have an election to show that the system has been cleaned up," he told BBC Radio's Today programme.
"I feel that with the record that I have had in the past, I am in the best position to clean up this political system so that when people go to the next election they will have candidates that they know, through transparency, are candidates they can vote for and at the same time they have a new form of democratic settlement before them that they can then feel proud that the British constitution has been reformed.
"That's what I'm going to do over these next few months.
"I am going to get on with the job that I set myself. People know I am determined and people know I work hard and people know that I am not going to allow temporary setbacks to deter me from doing what is the right thing for the country.
"We have a duty before we have an election to show that the system has been cleaned up," he told BBC Radio's Today programme.
"I feel that with the record that I have had in the past, I am in the best position to clean up this political system so that when people go to the next election they will have candidates that they know, through transparency, are candidates they can vote for and at the same time they have a new form of democratic settlement before them that they can then feel proud that the British constitution has been reformed.
"That's what I'm going to do over these next few months.
"I am going to get on with the job that I set myself. People know I am determined and people know I work hard and people know that I am not going to allow temporary setbacks to deter me from doing what is the right thing for the country.
"I am not arrogant or unwilling to listen to people but I do believe that if people look towards what needs to be done at the moment, it is to get us through this economic downturn. I think I have got the experience to do that."
