Brown's leadership under attack as economic woes grow

By Anna Tomforde Apr 18, 2008, 15:04 GMT

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Gordon Brown speaks during a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC., USA, April 17, 2008 Prime Minister Brown spent the day meeting with President Bush as well as 2008 US Presidential hopefuls Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY), Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) and Senator John McCain (R-AZ). EPA/BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI

London - What has happened to Gordon Brown? Just 10 months after he took over as Britain's Prime Minister his poll ratings have plummeted, his party is in rebellious mood and the newspaper cartoonists indulge in savage mockery.

The rapid decline in Brown's fortunes is all the more remarkable considering that only last summer, British voters marked their approval of the changeover from the Blair era to Brown with a huge honeymoon boost for the Labour Party in the opinion polls.

Now, confirming what must be Brown's worst political nightmare, pollsters and commentators are detecting a mood which signals that Britons are longing for the 'strong leadership' they enjoyed for 10 years under Tony Blair.

Brown was now walking in the 'shadow of Blair,' the Guardian said, while the prominent Labour peer, Lord Desai, remarked bluntly: 'Brown was put on earth to remind people what a good prime minister Tony Blair was.'

Brown was a 'worrier' who looked 'weak and indecisive,' said the hitherto loyal Labour politician and economics professor. While Blair's leadership style was defined by 'champagne and caviar,' that of Brown could be described as one of 'porridge or haggis' (ed: a Scottish dish of sheep's stomach).

In foreign policy, Brown's claim to a much vaunted 'special relationship' with the US has been weakened by competition from at least Paris and Rome, where strongly pro-American leaders Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi are now in power.

A newspaper cartoon marking Brown's White House talks with George W Bush Friday showed the American President pointing to a dog basket, with the caption: 'Blair used to sleep there.'

According to analysts in London, the rapid reversal of Brown's fortunes began with his hesitation last autumn over calling a 'honeymoon' general election.

His decision against holding a snap poll last October, after appearing to encourage the thought, marked him as a 'ditherer' and a risk-averse leader lacking in courage and vision.

The misjudgement, as it has been widely interpreted, was followed by a series of diplomatic faux pas, most notably Brown's snub to fellow-Europeans by turning up late for the signing of the EU reform treaty in Lisbon last December.

But, most importantly, Brown's troubles have coincided with the onset of economic gloom as a result of the global credit crunch. For Britain, the current slowdown is likely to spell the end of the 'boom economy' over which Brown resided as Chancellor of the Exchequer for more than a decade.

A recent opinion poll, which showed that 68 per cent of Britons have no trust in the government's ability to guide them through the crisis, must have made hurtful reading for Brown, who had been widely credited with establishing the Labour Party's reputation for economic competence.

Furthermore, a recent poll have given the opposition Conservatives a lead of 16 points over Labour, their biggest lead since 1992.

When Brown took power last June, Labour surged ahead of the Conservatives, after a previous steady decline in the polls attributed to voters' disenchantment with Blair, especially over Iraq.

Brown, meanwhile, has tried to silence his critics, and calm an increasingly restive party, by repeating the mantra that he, as a serious and steady politician, is more interested in the 'right long-term decisions' than in tomorrow's headlines.

In a recent TV interview, he made clear that he is not thinking of quitting, and denied that he had an 'indecisive image.'

'Not at all, I have taken in the last few months the long-term decisions that matter for this country,' he said. On the economy, he would take the appropriate measures to maintain stability, even if such steps were 'unpopular' in the short term.

'Politics is about more than plans, intuition and empathy matter,' the London Times warned Brown this week, recalling the very different leadership styles and levels of flamboyancy displayed by former prime ministers - from Margaret Thatcher to Tony Blair.