It's Brownhog Day

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Brownhog day: Return of the 'Get rid of Gordon gang'

Here we go again – as the Labour rout at Norwich North brings out the 'Get Rid of Gordon' gang, what are their chances this time? Jane Merrick reports

As predictably as soggy sandwiches at a British summer picnic, Labour's usual suspects emerged yesterday to call on Gordon Brown to consider his position as leader.

No sooner had the ballot boxes in Norwich North been packed away, than the Get Rid of Gordon group shuffled forward hoping to trigger a fresh leadership crisis.

Charles Clarke led the phalanx of critics who warned that the Prime Minister will face a challenge in the autumn – after MPs' 82-day summer holiday, naturally.

But while Mr Brown's leadership remains under threat, the malcontents were beginning to look like boys and girls crying wolf in what was becoming another "Brownhog Day".

During what Mr Brown admitted last week had been a "difficult year", he has been hit by a series of crises with ever-increasing frequency and predictability.

Even after the spate of resignations led by James Purnell, following the local and Euro elections in June, there was no mass revolt across the Labour Party.

But after nearly two months of relative quiet, Labour's defeat in Norwich to Conservative Chloe Smith – with a 7,348 majority – ignited a fresh round of sniping: Mr Brown's apparent reluctance to carry any of the blame for Labour's failure in the by-election crystallised much of the anger.

The Prime Minister blamed the result in Norwich on everything except his own unpopularity and even suggested every party had done badly. In the wake of Friday's result, he said: "The voters were clearly torn between their anger and dismay at what has been happening over MPs' expenses, something that we are trying to clean up, and at the same time the support for the former MP, the Labour MP Ian Gibson, who was very popular."

Mr Clarke pointed the finger at Mr Brown for his handling of the ousting of Mr Gibson over his expenses claim. Mr Brown should carry the blame for the "incompetent and unjust style" that had "deeply damaged democratic politics", he said.

The Schools Secretary, Ed Balls, Mr Brown's closest political ally, risked deepening anger among rebels by suggesting Mr Purnell had quit the Cabinet because of a "mid-life crisis".

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From The Red Rag

It's Brownhog Day