Ed Balls has issued a fresh appeal to the Liberal Democrats to work with Labour on a plan to kickstart the economy.
His appeal on the Andrew Marr show follows a letter in the Sunday Mirror which said that the shadow chancellor wanted to join forces with "sensible people in the government" - backing the "mansion tax" championed by Mr Cable.
However Balls ruled out Labour forming a future alliance with the party's current leader Nick Clegg.
Instead he insisted he wanted an outright win for Labour in 2015 but said that in the meantime his party should be working with the Lib Dems.
Balls said he could work with Cable 'immediately'
Speaking to Andrew Marr on the BBC, Mr Balls said: "I wish George Osborne would see Vince Cable as a man to do business with and listen to, rather than telling the newspapers he is putting his allies in (to the Business department) to try and surround him and hold him back.
"Vince should be listened to on banking reform and on the economy. I could work with Vince. I would like the Liberal Democrats to say right now that this coalition has failed and we're going to change course."
Asked whether he thought the junior coalition party was more closely allied to Labour thinking, he said: "I think that is true of many Liberal Democrats but I don't think that is true of Nick Clegg, whose instincts are clearly much closer to David Cameron and George Osborne.
"I am not somebody who thinking to myself I want a coalition for the future. I want a Labour majority government elected in 2015.
Vince Cable defended his links with senior Labour figures but insisted he had "no ambitions" for the party leadership and backed Mr Clegg.
Opposition leader Ed Miliband revealed last week that the pair had swapped text messages.
Vince Cable said he was happy with Clegg's leadership
Mr Cable said: "I'm not different in any way from Nick Clegg. I am happily part of his team. That is not changing. I am part of this coalition government and committed to working in it.
"But I do have perfectly businesslike, amicable relationships with members of the Labour Party and other parties. I see no problem in that - that is grown up and sensible."
Sitting next to Balls on the sofa, Mr Cable added: "I have chemistry with lots of people in public life - that's being grown up.
"I am very happy to talk to Ed; I talk to my Conservative colleagues in Government in an equally businesslike way."
He played down Mr Balls' assertion that he would be "very surprised if Nick Clegg fights the next election" and that Mr Cable had "distinguished himself" by acting in Britain's best interest.
"Flattery does not necessarily deal satisfactorily with the issue. We have a very good Deputy Prime Minister. I am very happy with Nick, he will continue in the job," Mr Cable said.