Brown announces his agricultural policy
From our UK edition
I think it's fair to say that the Dear Leader is out of his comfort zone here: Hat-tip: Paul Waugh.
Government
Friday
Can Brown’s inner circle be broken?
From our UK edition
Given the speculation that's whirling around Westminster about plots to oust Brown in the autumn, it's worth noting this passage from Steve Richards' article for the latest New Statesman: "The most significant change since the hopelessly disparate attempted coup last month is how the rest of the cabinet relate to Brown, Mandelson and Balls, the trio who are working closely together. Recently a friend asked one cabinet minister on the so-called Blairite wing whether he thought Mandelson would tell Brown that the game was up if polls suggested Labour was heading for electoral oblivion. The minister replied that he could no longer have such a conversation with Mandelson; it would be seen as disloyal to Brown to present such a hypothesis.
Thursday
Brown primes his new dividing line
From our UK edition
With Brown shifting his position on spending by the minute, it's worth highlighting this snippet from today's Guardian: "Treasury ministers, in particular, believe they can look at whether there will be a need for cuts at the time of the pre-budget report in the autumn. They intend to use the report to show the scale of projected future savings, as well as how frontline services and new priorities can be protected by switching resources. Labour still believes the Tories have made a political mistake by committing themselves to public spending cuts so early." It rather supports Fraser's prediction that, following all their talk about "envelopes" and "projections," the Government will suddenly start saying those "cuts" aren't necessary after all.
Sunday
Is the Left Waking From Its Slumber?
From our UK edition
A rather impassioned piece on unemployment from Polly Toynbee in yesterday's Guardian made me realise that there are a number of people on the liberal-left in Britain thinking very hard about the implications of the global recession. "Has the horror of it all struck Westminster with full force?," asks Polly? I think they are beginning to, but the problem is that they are stuck in the politics of the late-1990s census, which had us all triangulating like mad. All the clamour for an apology from the Prime Minister stems from a desire for him to atone for all our sins. It was difficult not to embrace the market when the market seemed so cuddly. What we mistook for comforting girth turned out to be the flabby product of over-indulgence. But this is not the time for self-flagellation.