Brown aide goes amid new turmoil in Cabinet
By Jane Merrick, Political Editor
Sunday, 31 August 2008
Gordon Brown was battling to contain cabinet indiscipline last night
after Alistair Darling undermined his fightback with a devastating
forecast for the economy. The Chancellor was unrepentant over a warning
in an interview yesterday that the country is on the brink of the worst
economic crisis for 60 years. The fresh infighting came as the 'IoS'
learned that Stephen Carter, Mr Brown's high-profile strategist, is to
leave his job after a bitter turf war inside Downing Street.
The public relations guru's move to a lower-key role is a victory for
the Prime Minister's long-serving advisers, who have have clashed with
Mr Carter, but will deepen the sense of a Government in crisis. Less
than a month after David Miliband infuriated Mr Brown by setting out his
stall as a leader-in-waiting, Mr Darling repeatedly refused to deny that
there would be a leadership challenge this autumn.
Asked in a TV interview whether he thought the Prime Minister's position
was safe, he said only: "I think Gordon Brown will do a very good job."
In an interview with The Guardian, Mr Darling ignited speculation that
he could resign from the Cabinet when the Prime Minister holds an autumn
reshuffle. Mr Brown was said to be furious at the sudden intervention
from the usually loyal and steady Mr Darling. It threatened to
overshadow a planned re-launch this week, which will focus on giving
more help to families struggling with the rising costs of housing and
fuel.
In echoes of Geoffrey Howe's devastating attack on Margaret Thatcher, Mr
Darling told The Guardian: "In 10 months we've gone from doing OK to
certainly not doing OK. We patently have not been able to get across
what we are for, and what we are about."
Friends of the Chancellor have made it clear that he does not want to be
made the "scapegoat" for an imminent recession which could hasten Mr
Brown's downfall.
Downing Street said it was "totally relaxed" about Mr Darling's failure
to address the question of leadership challenges. But an official
pointedly refused to agree with Mr Darling's assessment that the
economic crisis is the worst for 60 years. "The Prime Minister agrees it
is a very challenging international economic situation."
The Prime Minister will join the Foreign Secretary in Brussels tomorrow
for an emergency summit on the crisis in Georgia in their first meeting
since Mr Miliband's challenge to Mr Brown's authority a month ago.
Rescue plans for housing and fuel poverty will be unveiled later in the
week.
George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, said: "This weekend, on the eve
of the launch of Gordon Brown's heavily trailed recovery plan, the
Government's economic position is falling apart almost hour by hour.
Whether he meant to or not, the Chancellor has blurted out the truth
about the dire state of the economy and told us in crude but enduring
terms what the British people really feel about Labour.
"Either Gordon Brown must back up what Alistair Darling has said or it
will be clear to everyone that the Chancellor no longer commands the
confidence of the Prime Minister."
http://www.independ
turmoil-in-cabinet-
Sunday, 31 August 2008
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