The Labour leadership plot is brewing

Awaiting Moderation

Ah yes, the 2020 Vision thingy. How's it coming along?

Oscar

Ooo err - it get's more febrile by the day. Not so much Shakespearian as a right (or should that be left) Carry On.

Humpty-Dumpty

You rang Charles Clarke in 2007 about a story and he denied it outright? Then it turned out to be true? You were surprised? Sheesh, when you next have a day off, come and see the fairies at the bottom of my garden. ;)

Anthony a

I'd be more surprised if they were not plotting on how to get rid of Brown.

George Laird

Dear Matthew

This sorry little episode shows one thing, that "loyalty" is not a thing which is surviving in British Culture.

I am amazed by the number of top people who turn out to be rats and use "in the interests of" as an excuse to cover how false and shallow they actually are.

As for Charles Clarke, the human sandbag of the plotters; it isn't country, it isn't party and it isn't policy, it is a grudge, deeply held and personal.

Everyone knows the Clarke agenda and it isn't about the brotherhood of man more a Norwich jihad.

The poor boy lost his cabinet job and is still sulking.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow

ps is this a human interest story on how far a man is prepared to go for revenge?

Colin

I assume that the plotters are aware that should a move to oust Brown be successful, there would have to be an immediate general election?

The reasons why I don't think there will be a move to get rid of Brown in the short term are:

1. The Labour party can't financially afford a leadership election, never mind a general election.

2. Brown won't resign, under any circumstances, and there is no mechanism currently in place that would allow the party to remove him.

3. None of the so called contenders are fit to lace a PM's boots. Until a credible candidate appears - probably from nowhere (As they do...), the party will sit tight and tough it out with Brown.

Barring a personal tragedy (god forbid), Brown will be there until after the next election, win or lose...

That said. Two words: John Denham.

TrevorsDen

Brown is clearly a man who cannot take criticism. Not a good quality in a politician.

A move against his leadership would not go down very well with him at all.

But then when the electorate shower him with rotten tomatoes next month he may have to surface into the real world. Somehow though I doubt it. In think he is quite simply trapped into his parallel existence. if labour want to get rid of him it will be very painful.

The reward for someone if he succeeds could be high though. He would surely reap the gratitude of the nation - removing an economic disaster, a national embarrassment, would be a great relief. Who knows what might follow thereafter?

J H Holloway

Well, look at it from the point of view of the mainstream Labour MP. Brown, as he showed today at PMQs, is in mega denial.

How can he continue to use the 'investment v cuts' line? From my own enquiries, the man in the street has fully accepted the 'narrative' that Brown (as much as Labour itself) has run up huge debts that will take years to repay.

Of course Brown will never be able to admit this to himself. His entire political career has been based on two simple premises. That the Tories cut public spending and Labour increase it and that Tories cause boom-bust cycles.

Having caused a huge bust (almost single handedly as an over-mighty chancellor) and now found himself in a position of having to cut spending, Brown is simply unable to proceed any further as a politician, never mind as PM.

Because he has committed both the 'Tory' sins Brown is intellectually no more. He cannot make anymore headway, because he cannot spend any more money.

Thoughtful Labour MPs know this, and are waiting for a strong enough signal from voters in June to begin the process of extracting Brown.

DM

JOhn Denham - yes very able, but won't survive the general election.

Roger Thornhill

Colin: "3. None of the so called contenders are fit to lace a PM's boots."

Gordon must wear slip-ons then.

Tiberius

I am certain that Labour MPs do discuss the prospect of removing Brown. I am sure that many feared for their party once it became apparent that he would succeed Blair. But now, as back then, no one has the courage overtly to face him down.

In his final Conference speech as leader, Blair warned the party that to go back to the old ways would be catastrophic for it. Well Brown Unleashed has taken it back. Its future (like that of the country) depends on getting rid of him as soon as possible, so the pure survival instinct of many Labour MPs is bound to propel someone or some group to consider facing down the Lunatic.

Of course, the soul of anyone within New Labour directs them to lie first and ask questions later. It may not be Clarke who's up at it, but his capabilities would make him the best choice.

Major Plonquer

Clarke/Milburn are rightfully castigated for their use of the Labour 2020 Vision thing as a means to generate a quick headline - with typical New Labour zero follow through. This has been the Blairite modus operandi since day one.

But whatever happened to the Balls/Brown Proposition that was supposed to underpin the nation's economic future? It was called Post Neoclassical Endogenous Growth Theory.

Balls and Brown were too clever by half. "Let's pick a theory with lots of big sounding words that only people like us with giant brains can pretend we understand", I'm sure they mused.

I presume it is now Post Neoclassical Endogenous Bust Theory?

wrinkled weasel

Nobody seems to be talking about the long game. By which, I mean that the next General Election is lost for Labour. They face years in the wilderness, so why not start to recover now? Why not begin the process of re-building the Party under a leader who could perhaps be the John the Baptist, the John Smith of the Labour party who begins the process, but perhaps will then hand the mantle of leader to he or she who is yet to come.

Labour needs catharsis, a painful purging and reconstruction; a re-examination of core values and new people, unencumbered by sleaze and brazen amorality and ambition. Brown is a disaster, a grinning fool who has no vision but a tawdry grasping for power. He is on a collision course with the consequences of his moral and intellectual vacuity. Sensible people in the Labour Party know this. Of course they know this - they have been saying this and voting accordingly. And the sooner they face facts, the sooner they will be able to begin again.

Everybody is saying Gordon will not go before May 2010, but the plain fact is that this week, it is the only story in town.

Stewart

Colin makes some good points however I would argue that after Blair the fitness and honour required to lace a PM's boots dropped substantially. Blair must be beside himself with laughter at the horlicks Brown is making of being PM. Yet blame should also be attached to Blair, much of the situation we find ourselves in is his fault. He was too gutless to sack Brown when he started to block public sector reforms and abandon prudent spending plans inherited from the Major govt. He was the one who spent a decade swanning around the world making promises the country could never keep and then allowed Brown to do the same thing at home with our money. He knew what Brown was like, he could have sacked him. Whatever Brown had in evidence against Blair must be phenomenally embarrassing. Mr D'Ancona I'm shocked that you were ever surprised that a Labour politician would ever lie to you. If what you say is true, and I'm inclined to believe it is then we are in for some fun. Guido has weakened Brown's ability to quell these unrests and the plotters, hungry for revenge and perhaps to be seen as heroes, know it.

Fergus Pickering

Butlet us devoutly hope that nothing happens to save the Labou Party and that it will go down in flames for ever leaving us Clegg's lot as an opposition, Clegg's lot and the Blairite rump. And about twenty years of Tory government, enough to see me out. Good god, WHAT could have possessed us to vote for this collection of chancers and no-hopers for so long?

Roger

Brown is not mentally stable, therefore anyone with a degree of sanity will suffice to run a GE and save Labour from total humiliation. Anyone could do the job better than Brown even that loathsome Harperson.

The Bellman

Whenever I think of a Labour leadership election, I cannot help but be reminded of the scene in *Platoon* where Elias confronts Barnes over the murder of the village headman and pulling a pistol on the young girl. After a vicious scrap, Barnes and Elias are separated by their buddies, and Barnes, mouth bleeding and screaming that Elias is a "f***ing puke" [sic] is led away.

That is how I imagine McSnotty taking any challenge, with Balls, Whelan and McLiar attempting to restrain him and assuring him that 'he's not worth it', as his limbs flail around ineffectually and spittle flies at his every utterance.

[Of course, I'm not saying that McSnotty would literally threaten women and children with a pistol; and I'm sure he'd kill old people only indirectly, perhaps by starvation brought on by penury.]

oldtimer

I believe you when you say a politician lied to your face. It happened to me once, many years ago. In that instance a Minister denied, to my face, being the unattributed author of comments that were harmful to a business for which I was then responsible. I was confident he was lying as my face because my impeccable source at the FT heard him say it (via the lobby and off the record of course). I noted his denial and moved on - but I think he knew I knew.

There is corruption at the heart of politics and how it is reported. That is why Guido Fawkes performed a significant public service in exposing the squalid e-mail scheme cooked up by those Brown cronies, McBride, Draper and others we can know about. Just keep on reporting.

Vulture

The Bliarites can huff and puff but the only way to shift Bruin would be a mass resignation of key Cabinet ministers in the wake of a meltdown in the June
polls. Short of that, he's safe for a year. One must remember, however, a key facet of this warped weirdo's character : viz. that he is a big, steaming, wobbling mass of cowardly jelly when it comes to elections. In Thatcher's word he is 'frit' of people voting. He proved it when he bottled out of battling B.liar for the leadership; and underlined it when he bottled the 2007 election which he would have won, and proved it yet again when he ensured that no-one would stand against him when he inherited Bliar's tarnished crown. If he concludes that he will be humiliatingly thrashed at the GE he might prefer to go quietly, and in his usual yellow-belly Macavity fashion, let someone else carry the can.
To quote the maddie himself in another context: "I am taking full responsibility. That is why the person responsible has resigned". And as for John Denham, Colin, I saw him on QT the other week: he makes a lump of lard look animated and he's gonna lose his seat anyway, as Stewart says. Have a nice day!

Death or Tory

Brown must indeed go, but I'm not sure I would wish that utter buffoon Charles Clarke onto my worst enemy (or even New Labour for that matter).

Dr Blue

Isn't this Sir Humphrey's maxim in operation? "Never believe anything until it's been officially denied twice."

The very need for an act of denial almost confirms that something is going on.

Or am I just enjoying watching ever more ludicrous conspiracies emerging as this government disintegrates?

Keir Hardy Society

Death or Tory- exactly my sentiments towards Cameron! (in place of your New Labour please write the United Kingdom!!)

KRO

Someone needs some Laser Surgery, me thinks...

http://is.gd/xrJ7

colin

On the John Denham angle:

Yes, he did come across like a muppet on QT the other week, but bear in mind, he was on human shield duty.

Under normal circumstances, he has a number of good things going for him: For a start, he's not part of the corrupt Scotia Nostra that rules the Labour party, north and south of the border. Despite his past as a fully paid up member of the left wing, parasite class, he has a broader middle England appeal than most of the muppets in the PLP. Plus he represents a southern seat, with a majority of around 9500.

He's worth punting a pony at the bookies.

Death or Tory

@ Keir Hardy Society

Ah, but 'Fungus The Bogeyman' hssn't a hope of leading the Country, whereas Cameron...

MikeF

If there were a serious attempt to remove Gordon Brown then, of course, he would still have one particular recourse open to him - that of pressing the 'nuclear button' i.e. calling a General Election. It is the one thing in his power that could make it look like he was dictating events. I think he might yet do so in the Autumn. After all a lot of 'plotters' would doubtless lose their seats.

David Lindsay

There was once a large pro-Soviet faction within the Labour Party, cleverly on paper nothing to do with the CPGB. The Spectator never campaigned to make any of its members Prime Minister, even if only for a few months. What has changed?