Brown: The Guilty Men (And Women) Who Said Nothing

Brown: The Guilty Men (And Women) Who Said Nothing

Iain Dale 9:55 AM

An interesting anecdote from Chris Mullin's diaries...

Lisanne told me that when the Treasury Select Committee, which Giles [Radice] used to chair, published a report that was anything less than a perfect replica of the official position, Gordon Brown used to ring up Giles at midnight, incandescent with rage, f-ing and blinding, demanding retractions, slamming down the phone. At times, she said, it was so bad that Giles stopped answering the phone when it rang after midnight because he knew it would be Gordon. Giles said, 'He had no concept of the proporieties that should exist between a secretary of state and a select committee.'

I wonder whether John McFall, the current chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, gets similar calls. I think we all know the answer to that one.

Reading Mullin's diaries - and he is a big critic of Brown's personal and political conduct - I keep wondering to myself just how this deeply flawed man was ever allowed to become Prime Minister when so many of his colleagues, like Mullin, knew exactly what he was like. The truth is, that Labour backbenchers (and ministers, for that matter) were terrified of him and no one had the guts to say what they were all thinking: that this man is not fit to hold the office. The irony is that many of them will now pay for that misjudgement with their seats.

Another amusing little story from his diaries...

Some time ago Clare Short and Mo Mowlam were attending upon the Queen when Clare's pager started vibrating. Claresurreptitiously checked the message. Whereupon her Majesty looked up and inquired, 'Someone important?'