According to my reading of an article in The Sunday Times, Mr Brown’s senior Cabinet is in total meltdown phase as Peter Mandleson is begging to be made Foreign Secretary. Apparently it is his lifelong ambition to follow in his grandfather Herbert Morrison’s steps and take charge, even if ever so briefly, of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Of course that leaves the small problem of what to do with David Miliband, the current holder of the post. Peter had (it is rumoured) been promised the post if David went to Europe as High Representative but, of course, that never happened. Mandleson would have liked that job himself (and indeed lobbied Brown for a nomination), but Brown wanted him in England, close to him, well, running the country for him actually.
Mandleson, whom Brown would do well to remember is not a man to be crossed, believes that it is too late now for there to be any coup d’etat in Cabinet and that the Prime Minister is safe as leader until the General Election. However, poor old Brown also has a problem with his (other) right hand man, Ed Balls, who wants to be Chancellor, in that Alistair Darling, who is Chancellor, doesn’t want to give it up. None of these people would be happy with the demotion to Business Secretary. It is the current incumbent, rather than the title, that is the de facto Deputy Prime Minister.
The Times states that neither Miliband nor Darling know anything of this little intrigue, although, it seem to me that, if either of them reads The Times or Munguin’s Republic that’s out of date information.
It makes you wonder sometimes why anyone in their right mind would want to be Prime Minister... Oh, wait a minute.... right mind????
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