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April 17th, 2008, 12:08 PM
As British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visits America, a Labour Party peer, Lord Desai, says that "Gordon Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was."
Lord Desai accuses the British Prime Minister, who is a Scotsman, of being "haggis-like", and says that with Brown as the leader of the Labour Party the Conservatives, led by David Cameron, may end up winning the next General Election, which will be held either in 2009 or 2010.
Desai believes that Brown should quit as Labour leader, less than a year since becoming Prime Minister, and that Foreign Secretary David Miliband should run as the Labour Party's candidate for Prime Minister at the next General Election.
Brown visited Barack Obama today. Britain's Labour Party is the equivalent of America's Democrats.
'Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was': Labour peer's devastating critique of 'haggis-like' Prime Minister
17th April 2008
Daily Mail
As Gordon Brown struggles to get noticed in America, critics back home have become increasingly vocal as a leading Labour peer today issued a devastating attack on the Prime Minister's electoral chances.
Just a day after the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, admitted that Labour needed to "sharpen up" Lord Desai today claimed that the combination of an economic downturn and the Prime Minister's presentational weaknesses now made it "very difficult" for Labour to win the next election.
He also confirmed that many senior figures in the party were turning their minds to who would succeed him as leader.
Today Mr Brown was in Washington meeting America's next potential leader.
He spent 45 minutes with Democrat Barack Obama and then met republican candidate John McCain and Hillary Clinton.
Gordon Brown met Democrat candidate Barack Obama this afternoon as he began planning for a post-Bush U.S.
Lord Desai told London's Evening Standard: "Gordon Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was.
"It is a bit like William Hague who is a far better shadow foreign secretary than he was a leader of the Conservative party."
Labour Party peer Lord Desai thinks that with Gordon Brown at the helm it will be very difficult for Labour to win the next election
He added that the PM had recently appeared "indecisive" and "weak" and that the Labour party was "down in the dumps".
Prof Desai continued: "There have been talks on all levels about what do about it".
The Labour peer compared Mr Brown's leadership style to "porridge, or maybe haggis". He added: "It is not very persuasive if you don't already agree with him."
He continued: "Gordon is a worrier with an academic approach to solving problems, but that does not always reassure people when they feel uncertain."
The peer, who is emeritus professor of economics at the London School of Economics, said the outcome of the local elections in London a fortnight today would now largely determine whether the Labour party stuck with Mr Brown as its leader — or prepared itself for a transition.
Asked who he would prefer to succeed Mr Brown, he said:“We are not there yet. It is very difficult to change a Labour leader before an election.
"When - or if - the time comes, I think it has to be David Miliband because he has shown maturity about the leadership and he withstood the pressure to stand last year against Gordon.”
Future PM?: Lord Desai believes Gordon Brown should stand down as Prime Minister and the relatively young Foreign Secretary David Miliband should take his place
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister was struggling to get noticed during his U.S. trip. The New York Times pointed out his visit had been "overshadowed" by Pope Benedict's arrival in the country, while other prominent newspapers barely mentioned Mr Brown.
He started his day with an appearance on the Good Morning America TV programme.
Looking uncomfortable, Mr Brown told presenter Diane Sawyer of his admiration for America and his love of U.S. TV.
Grilling: Gordon Brown settles down with veteran Good Morning America host Diane Sawyer
Later, the Prime Minister was snubbed by South African President Thabo Mbeki. The pair were supposed to meet before a UN Security Council session on Africa chaired by Mr Mbeki, but the South African cancelled claiming he was "running late".
Hours later at the Security Council, Mr Brown launched a blistering attack on Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe. He accused Mr Mugabe of "stealing" last month's presidential by refusing to publish the result.
Embarrassingly for Mr Brown the row over Zimbabwe was barely noticed in the U.S. as he headed for Washington for formal talks with George Bush and planned meetings with the three main presidential candidates.
Mr Brown has been mocked for timing his trip to coincide with the Pope's visit, which is receiving blanket coverage in the American media.
'Sharpen up': Chancellor Alistair Darling, pictured with Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the height of the Northern Rock crisis, admitted that the PM's government had lost its edge
It is a disappointment for Mr Brown's aides, who were eager for success on the international stage to repair his image after weeks of difficulties over falling poll ratings, the Olympics torch and Labour rebellions.
Instead the Prime Minister found his visit mocked as "Mr Bean Goes to America" by an opposition MP while a U.S. journalist dubbed it "the invisible trip".
His predicament was compounded when Chancellor, Alistair Darling, admitted that the Government had to "sharpen up" its act.
Eyes wide shut: Gordon Brown prepapres to address the United Nations Security Council
He said that the party lacked a clear message and had failed to connect with voters. Mr Darling is by far the most senior Cabinet minister to call publicly for a change of tactics in the face of collapsing opinion poll ratings.
Speaking on a visit to China, Mr Darling said: "We have got to make sure that ... we sharpen ourselves up, that we have a clear message of what we are about."
His suggestion that Mr Brown has failed to articulate a clear vision to voters will be seen as deeply unhelpful at Downing Street.
He said: "All governments and parties go through difficult patches. This is a time when we should remember why we stand for government, the purpose of being in government."
George Osborne, the Tory shadow chancellor, said: "This is an unprecedented attack on the Prime Minister by his most senior Cabinet colleague, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
"Even Gordon Brown never criticised Tony Blair in public."
Mr Brown moves to Washington today where he is scheduled to meet President Bush and the three frontrunners in the presidential race.
Low key:Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived at New York's JFK Airport last night in a rented passenger jet. No-one was there to meet him
"He is the unlucky Prime Minister," commented Illinois congressman Mark Steven Kirk. "The Pope has sucked all the oxygen from the system.
"This PM has an extremely low profile in the U.S. He has not said or done anything Americans have noticed much."
Former British ambassador to the US Sir Christopher Meyer told BBC radio that it was much harder to make Americans interested in Mr Brown than the "self-selling" Tony Blair who, ironically, is due in the States next week for a series of high-level meetings.
Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "When I referred to the Prime Minister as Mr Bean it was done half in jest.
"But this image of Mr Bean now seems all too real."
Mary Jordan, of the Washington Post, said: "It's the invisible trip. He will come and he will go. People do not know who he is.
"Although he went on American Idol, millions watching said to each other, 'wow, I thought Tony Blair was the British premier'."
dailymail.co.uk
As British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visits America, a Labour Party peer, Lord Desai, says that "Gordon Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was."
Lord Desai accuses the British Prime Minister, who is a Scotsman, of being "haggis-like", and says that with Brown as the leader of the Labour Party the Conservatives, led by David Cameron, may end up winning the next General Election, which will be held either in 2009 or 2010.
Desai believes that Brown should quit as Labour leader, less than a year since becoming Prime Minister, and that Foreign Secretary David Miliband should run as the Labour Party's candidate for Prime Minister at the next General Election.
Brown visited Barack Obama today. Britain's Labour Party is the equivalent of America's Democrats.
'Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was': Labour peer's devastating critique of 'haggis-like' Prime Minister
17th April 2008
Daily Mail
As Gordon Brown struggles to get noticed in America, critics back home have become increasingly vocal as a leading Labour peer today issued a devastating attack on the Prime Minister's electoral chances.
Just a day after the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, admitted that Labour needed to "sharpen up" Lord Desai today claimed that the combination of an economic downturn and the Prime Minister's presentational weaknesses now made it "very difficult" for Labour to win the next election.
He also confirmed that many senior figures in the party were turning their minds to who would succeed him as leader.
Today Mr Brown was in Washington meeting America's next potential leader.
He spent 45 minutes with Democrat Barack Obama and then met republican candidate John McCain and Hillary Clinton.
Gordon Brown met Democrat candidate Barack Obama this afternoon as he began planning for a post-Bush U.S.
Lord Desai told London's Evening Standard: "Gordon Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was.
"It is a bit like William Hague who is a far better shadow foreign secretary than he was a leader of the Conservative party."
Labour Party peer Lord Desai thinks that with Gordon Brown at the helm it will be very difficult for Labour to win the next election
He added that the PM had recently appeared "indecisive" and "weak" and that the Labour party was "down in the dumps".
Prof Desai continued: "There have been talks on all levels about what do about it".
The Labour peer compared Mr Brown's leadership style to "porridge, or maybe haggis". He added: "It is not very persuasive if you don't already agree with him."
He continued: "Gordon is a worrier with an academic approach to solving problems, but that does not always reassure people when they feel uncertain."
The peer, who is emeritus professor of economics at the London School of Economics, said the outcome of the local elections in London a fortnight today would now largely determine whether the Labour party stuck with Mr Brown as its leader — or prepared itself for a transition.
Asked who he would prefer to succeed Mr Brown, he said:“We are not there yet. It is very difficult to change a Labour leader before an election.
"When - or if - the time comes, I think it has to be David Miliband because he has shown maturity about the leadership and he withstood the pressure to stand last year against Gordon.”
Future PM?: Lord Desai believes Gordon Brown should stand down as Prime Minister and the relatively young Foreign Secretary David Miliband should take his place
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister was struggling to get noticed during his U.S. trip. The New York Times pointed out his visit had been "overshadowed" by Pope Benedict's arrival in the country, while other prominent newspapers barely mentioned Mr Brown.
He started his day with an appearance on the Good Morning America TV programme.
Looking uncomfortable, Mr Brown told presenter Diane Sawyer of his admiration for America and his love of U.S. TV.
Grilling: Gordon Brown settles down with veteran Good Morning America host Diane Sawyer
Later, the Prime Minister was snubbed by South African President Thabo Mbeki. The pair were supposed to meet before a UN Security Council session on Africa chaired by Mr Mbeki, but the South African cancelled claiming he was "running late".
Hours later at the Security Council, Mr Brown launched a blistering attack on Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe. He accused Mr Mugabe of "stealing" last month's presidential by refusing to publish the result.
Embarrassingly for Mr Brown the row over Zimbabwe was barely noticed in the U.S. as he headed for Washington for formal talks with George Bush and planned meetings with the three main presidential candidates.
Mr Brown has been mocked for timing his trip to coincide with the Pope's visit, which is receiving blanket coverage in the American media.
'Sharpen up': Chancellor Alistair Darling, pictured with Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the height of the Northern Rock crisis, admitted that the PM's government had lost its edge
It is a disappointment for Mr Brown's aides, who were eager for success on the international stage to repair his image after weeks of difficulties over falling poll ratings, the Olympics torch and Labour rebellions.
Instead the Prime Minister found his visit mocked as "Mr Bean Goes to America" by an opposition MP while a U.S. journalist dubbed it "the invisible trip".
His predicament was compounded when Chancellor, Alistair Darling, admitted that the Government had to "sharpen up" its act.
Eyes wide shut: Gordon Brown prepapres to address the United Nations Security Council
He said that the party lacked a clear message and had failed to connect with voters. Mr Darling is by far the most senior Cabinet minister to call publicly for a change of tactics in the face of collapsing opinion poll ratings.
Speaking on a visit to China, Mr Darling said: "We have got to make sure that ... we sharpen ourselves up, that we have a clear message of what we are about."
His suggestion that Mr Brown has failed to articulate a clear vision to voters will be seen as deeply unhelpful at Downing Street.
He said: "All governments and parties go through difficult patches. This is a time when we should remember why we stand for government, the purpose of being in government."
George Osborne, the Tory shadow chancellor, said: "This is an unprecedented attack on the Prime Minister by his most senior Cabinet colleague, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
"Even Gordon Brown never criticised Tony Blair in public."
Mr Brown moves to Washington today where he is scheduled to meet President Bush and the three frontrunners in the presidential race.
Low key:Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived at New York's JFK Airport last night in a rented passenger jet. No-one was there to meet him
"He is the unlucky Prime Minister," commented Illinois congressman Mark Steven Kirk. "The Pope has sucked all the oxygen from the system.
"This PM has an extremely low profile in the U.S. He has not said or done anything Americans have noticed much."
Former British ambassador to the US Sir Christopher Meyer told BBC radio that it was much harder to make Americans interested in Mr Brown than the "self-selling" Tony Blair who, ironically, is due in the States next week for a series of high-level meetings.
Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "When I referred to the Prime Minister as Mr Bean it was done half in jest.
"But this image of Mr Bean now seems all too real."
Mary Jordan, of the Washington Post, said: "It's the invisible trip. He will come and he will go. People do not know who he is.
"Although he went on American Idol, millions watching said to each other, 'wow, I thought Tony Blair was the British premier'."
dailymail.co.uk
