Britannia Radio

Jane Daly

was born in America, and taught philosophy before beginning her political life on the Left - all factors that inform her writing on policy and politicians.

Is Gordon Brown insane?

Posted By: Janet Daley at Apr 1, 2009 at 14:14:52 [General]

Posted in: Politics

Tags:

Angela Merkel, Barack Obama, G20, Gordon Brown, Nicolas Sarkozy




Once again I am compelled to ask the question, "Is Gordon Brown quite mad?" This is not vulgar abuse. We must consider the possibility at this point that the Prime Minister is technically delusional. He announced this morning,as a statement of fact, that "We are within a few hours of agreeing a global plan for economic recovery and reform." Is the truth being kept from him or is his self-protective state of denial so advanced that he simply has not noticed that Nicolas Sarkozy is (or is pretending to be) so outraged by the Anglo-American model for economic recovery that he is threatening to flounce out of the G20 summit?

Has Mr Brown not been informed either of the latest comments by Angela Merkel, a much cooler head than Mr Sarkozy, who has reiterated her resistance to further fiscal stimulus and insisted on her right to make her own country's interests her top priority? Is Mr Brown in touch with reality at all? Or was his apparently bizarre claim made in a momentary fit of whimsical optimism brought on by the presence at his side of Barack Obama? Then again, perhaps he is simply aware that whatever transpires at tomorrow's summit, the usual diplomatic wordsmiths will manage to transmute it into a successful "plan for economic recovery and reform". Then the question that will have to be asked is, "Is anybody, apart from Mr Brown, likely to be fooled by this?"