Gordon Brown will make a rare appearance in the House of Commons next Wednesday when he leads a debate on the need to clean up radiation from a beach in his constituency.

The former prime minister has largely kept out of the public eye since he left Downing Street in May 2010 and has made only two other interventions in Commons debates since then - an attendance record that has drawn criticism from his political opponents.

His last intervention in a Commons debate came at the height of the phone hacking scandal on July 13 of this year when he stood to launch a vicious attack on Rupert Murdoch and News International.

During that half hour long speech Brown was subject to sustained heckling from the Conservative benches.

Brown may be hoping that Wednesday evening's debate will be a calmer affair as on the face of it the subject matter leaves him less open the partisan attack.

In the debate Brown will repeat calls he made earlier this week for the Ministry of Defence to "recognise their responsibility" and clean up radioactive particles from Dalgety Bay.

However some opposition MPs may not be able to resist the temptation to try and get under Brown's skin, especially given the debate is due to take place on the same day a large scale strikes by public sector workers.

The MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath's only other contribution in the chamber since he left office was over a year ago on November 1, 2010, when he asked about the construction of air craft carriers in his constituency.