By Ma Guihua
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been engrossed in a controversial cabinet reshuffle as he moves to desperately hold onto power following the MPs' expenses scandals.
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Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown (R), flanked by Health Secretary Alan Johnson, smiles before giving his speech on the National Health Service at King's College in London Jan. 7, 2008. [Xinhua] |
Now with the heavyweight posts of the government revealed and secured, the embattled Labor leader still dare not rest at ease, as the worst is yet to come.
The reshuffle, which started on Friday when the results of English local elections and European parliamentary elections were coming out, turned out not as striking as insiders had speculated.
Chancellor Alistair Darling, the high-profile perpetrator in the expenses scandal who had allegedly claimed a service charge for a London flat on his parliamentary allowance despite living in a home in Downing Street for part of that period, remains in his Treasury office. This is widely seen as a resounding demonstration of an inside struggle which the prime minister was powerless to win over.
With the seat of Chancellor intact, the reshuffle went on without much suspense, especially after Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell unexpectedly announced resignation "for the good of the Labor Party" on the eve of the reshuffle.
He made it known publicly that he no longer had the confidence in the prime minister and called for Brown to quit.
For the most part, the reshuffle was a re-filling of the posts vacated by ministers plagued by the expenses scandal, namely, former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith and former Communities and Local Government Secretary Hazel Blears.
Blears, whose behavior had been criticized by Brown as "unacceptable", stepped down after she was found not paying capital gains tax when selling another property on which she had claimed the parliamentary second homes allowance. She later repaid 13,000 pounds (21,000 US dollars) to HM Revenue and Customs. But the damage was already done.
The announcement of Defense Secretary John Hutton on Friday to stand down as MP for family reasons probably came as some solace to Brown, as Hutton voiced support and loyalty to the prime minister upon his departure when some MPs were circulating e-mails soliciting signatures for Brown's removal.
The reshuffle was widely regarded as Brown's final endeavor to reassert his authority in the government after the Labor Party was seriously damaged in the expenses scandals.
Poll results before the local elections showed that the ruling Labor fell behind the Liberal Democratic Party for the first time in 22 years.
The ICM poll found Labor has suffered badly from the MPs' expenses scandal in voters' trust, with 54 percent respondents saying Labor came out the worst, while 13 percent believed Conservatives were badly damaged.
Only 22 percent of voters said they would support Labor in the next general election, compared with 40 percent for the Conservative Party, and 25 percent for the Liberal Democrats.
This is the lowest level of support recorded by Labor since ICM started regular polling in 1984.
The complexity of the situation is that the Conservatives fared no better in the expenses "saga" than the Labor.
Voters have generally lost trust in the politicians whichever camp they are from.
The local election results have been fatal to the Labor as it has been left without control of any county council in the country. Even Brown admitted on Friday to the "painful defeat for Labor" in the elections.
Brown told a press conference on Friday afternoon: "I admit mistakes have been made and I accept full responsibility."
However, he pledged that an independent audit panel will review all MPs' expenses in the last four years as part of the government's mission to clean up politics, work for economic recovery and political reform.
After the reshuffle of major members of his cabinet, Brown believed that he now has "the right persons with the right team" who are "committed to serving the nation first and foremost."
He insisted that he will "not waver or walk away and will get on with the job."
"I would not be here if I did not think I was the best person for this job," he added, saying he has "a responsibility to lead this country through the worst of economic times."
But the worst is not over. As Brown starts reshuffling junior ministers on Sunday, no one is sure it will end minister resignations.
What's more, if the European parliamentary elections results on Sunday night prove that the British National Party, a "fascist" party viewed by many as it is opposed to immigration and ethnic minorities in Britain, won at least one seat, it will be a "political disaster" for both the Labor and Brown.
Observers predict a major mutiny on Monday when the Labor MPs meet if the Nationalists' "one seat" materialized. Brown will have to face fight from both within and outside his party.
(Xinhua News Agency June 8, 2009)
