Brown seeks to strengthen government in major reshuffle (Roundup)

Oct 3, 2008, 13:55 GMT

London - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown Friday undertook a comprehensive reshuffle of his battered government bringing in a number of New Labour 'heavyweights' and replacing hapless Defence Secretary Des Browne.

While the most senior cabinet positions - such as the foreign and interior portfolios - remained unchanged, Brown surprised observers by bringing Peter Mandelson, a senior New Labour figure and current European Union (EU) trade commissioner, into the cabinet.

Mandelson, a close ally of former prime minister Tony Blair, is to become business secretary, a crucial post to which he brings his four-year experience as trade commissioner in Brussels.

He will be succeeded in his European Commission post by Baroness Catherine Ashton, the current leader of the House of Lords and former schools minister who was brought into government by Brown when he took over from Blair last year.

The most high-profile casualty of the reshuffle is Des Browne who is generally seen as having made little impact as defence secretary, and who will be replaced by John Hutton, the outgoing business secretary.

The only cabinet appointment not involving a former department head is that of Ed Miliband, the younger brother of Foreign Secretary David Miliband, who will take over the newly created Department of Energy & Climate Change.

Ed Miliband, 38, who joined the government together with his older brother last year, has held the post of cabinet office minister since Brown came to power in June 2007.

Brown also brought back Margaret Beckett, a Labour veteran and former foreign secretary, to the role of cabinet enforcer, while Nick Brown, a former agriculture secretary and close ally of Gordon Brown, will become Labour's chief whip.

Geoff Hoon, who has held that post up to now, is to become transport secretary, a position vacated by Ruth Kelly whose resignation announcement last week triggered the reshuffle.

However, the return of Mandelson, who has twice resigned from a Labour government under a cloud, was Brown's most surprising move.

Analysts said the reshuffle was clearly aimed at adding some 'weight and experience' to the cabinet, which had been criticized in some quarters for being 'too young.'

It also showed that the old 'Blairite and Brownite' divisions, which had plagued the Labour Party under Tony Blair, had been overcome, some analysts said.

Others, however, said Mandelson's return would prove to be a mistake as it could reopened the old left-right divide in the party.

Brown, who has presided over a dramatic fall in Labour's popularity, clearly hopes that his government will be strengthened by the formation of a 'unity cabinet' that combines experience with youth, analysts said.