Brown's government in crisis?

Nick 0208 Ldn

By Philip Webster, Political Editor
April 14, 2008

The Tories will twist the knife in Labour’s wounds today as Gordon Brown prepares for a crucial week of diplomacy amid growing talk among his ministers of a collapse in his authority.

Cabinet ministers yesterday called for an end to the infighting after a weekend that produced another disastrous poll for Mr Brown and Labour.
Backstage gossip of a potential coup against the Prime Minister and warnings of revolts over the detention of terrorist suspects and the abolition of the 10p tax rate added to party woes.

A YouGov survey for The Sunday Times suggested that Mr Brown’s personal ratings had fallen farther and faster than any British leader since Neville Chamberlain in the 1930s.

Another poll, published in the Financial Times today, suggests that he is less trusted to steer Britain through the global financial crisis than any other major Western European leader. Mr Brown flies to America tomorrow night for meetings at the UN, talks with President Bush and photocalls with the presidential hopefuls.

Although the Commons is in recess, ministers will try this week to find ways of restoring discipline in the party and avoiding defeats for Mr Brown on the move to hold suspects for 42 days and the 10p rate, which will be debated next Monday.

Today the Conservatives, hoping to exploit Labour disarray in next month’s London and local elections, will try to add to the agony. George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, will use a speech on Conservative economic policy to claim that “Labour is fighting itself rather than fighting for the country”.

Mr Brown’s allies are in despair over the scale of briefing against him in the Sunday papers, including ministers colluding in stories about a Cabinet race to succeed him. In fact, any move against Mr Brown can almost certainly be ruled out. For most Labour MPs it would be unthinkable to remove a leader so soon after his election, and most believe that such action would hand power to the Tories for a lengthy period as it would suggest Labour had lost the will to govern.

Charles Clarke, a former Home Secretary, said that there was “absolutely no foundation” in a report that he was collecting names for a “stalking horse” challenge to Mr Brown if Labour were to perform as badly as feared on May 1. But that some MPs, at least, have obviously been speaking in such terms is another sign of the indiscipline that appears to have gripped the party.

In other developments over the weekend a former minister said that at a recent party attended by Brownites and Blairites “we all agreed that we were f****d”. Also, Mr Brown was alleged to have promised Ed Balls that he would fight only one election, implying that Mr Balls would be his chosen successor. The allegation was denied by all sides.

Michael Wills, a Brownite and Jack Straw’s deputy at the Justice Department, denied that he was the source of a leak claiming a near bust-up between Mr Straw and Mr Balls.

Tessa Jowell, the Olympics Minister, said the 10p tax rebels were providing a “reality check” for the Government and had to be taken seriously.

Mr Balls’s ministerial colleague Lord Adonis denied claims that the Schools Secretary’s moves on admissions policy were part of a campaign to position himself for the leadership.

Lord Adonis said: “Over the past nine months we have been driving forward Labour’s education reforms under Ed’s leadership. Raising the education age to 18, diplomas, more academies and trust schools and fair admissions are all critical to the future of our country — and are all opposed by the Tories. The idea that these reforms can be dismissed as political games or positioning is ridiculous.”

The whips will take soundings this week on the scale of the likely rebellion over the 10p tax rate. It will be debated in the Commons next Monday on the second reading of the Finance Bill, but a vote will come later.

The Harris survey in the Financial Times found that 68 per cent of voters were “not confident at all” in the Government’s ability to deal with the economic crisis. The leaders of other European countries fared better: Germany, 52 per cent; France, 50 per cent; Italy, 43 per cent; Spain, 36 per cent.

State of the parties

44% Conservatives
28% Labour
17% Liberal Democrats
11% of voters believe that Labour will win a clear victory in the next general election

Source: YouGov

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle3740134.ece

PJ

it's pathetic how long it took labour ministers top "realise" the impact of the aboliton of the 10p tax band.

Nick 0208 Ldn

Jon Craig, Chief political correspondent
Thursday April 24, 2008

The Conservatives have stormed to an 18-point opinion poll lead over Labour, confirming that the 10p tax row has badly damaged Gordon Brown.

A YouGov poll in Friday's Daily Telegraph shows the Tories on 44%, up one point on last month, Labour on 26%, down three, and the Liberal Democrats on 17%, unchanged.

It is the Conservatives' biggest lead since October 1987, just after Margaret Thatcher won her third general election victory.

It comes at the end of a week dominated by the 10p tax row in which David Cameron branded the Prime Minister "a loser, not a leader".

It suggests Mr Cameron could win a general election with a Commons majority of more than 50 seats.

It will also boost the Tories' hopes that Boris Johnson can defeat Ken Livingstone in the election for London Mayor next week.

Mr Brown's leadership is directly questioned by the poll, with two thirds of people believing he has failed to give the Government a clear sense of direction.

The Tories' biggest lead over Labour previously was 16 points in the last two YouGov polls in The Sunday Times.

Earlier this week an ICM poll in The Guardian showed Labour closing the gap, cutting the Tory lead from 13 to five points.

Most opinion polls have shown the Conservatives building a steady lead over Labour since Mr Brown abandoned his plans for a general election in October last year.

Before then Labour enjoyed big leads over the Tories, the biggest margin being a 13-point lead at the end of September, when Mr Brown and his allies were talking up a snap general election.

:: YouGov questioned 2,073 people between Monday and Wednesday, the day Mr Brown announced his U-turn on the 10p tax row.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/...313994,00.html

spinoza

I want to campaign against the campaign against abolishing the 10p tax band.

I'm better off by a lot of money.

noodlehair

I want to campaign against your campaign against the campaign against abolishing the 10p tax band.

Plechazunga

I want to campaign against noodle's campaign against Spin's campaign against the campaign against abolishing the 10p tax band

MikeUpNorth

Fuck all your campaigns, I haven't kept up with the news.