As the title of this post suggests, could this morning's monthly press conference be the beginning of the end for Gordon Brown?Gordon has been lucky to have received a relatively easy ride from the media during his first few months as PM. However the events of last week are going to change all that. The press are not at all happy with the way they have been snubbed. First there was Gordon's refusal to take any of the dead tree journalists on his disastrous visit to Iraq. A few days later he snubbed them again. He announced his decision not to call an Autumn election in a one to one with his pet reporter Andrew Marr, leaving (as one reporter put it) the rest reporting from the gutter opposite No 10.
Since then there has been a united criticism from the press, even from those normally loyal to the left. Brown has made a massive miscalculation: you can dump on the public and get away with it, but not the press. It's the press that put Prime Ministers into No 10, and it's the press that can remove them. Gordon had better be very careful to avoid spin during his brief to the press this morning. He is already in for a grilling and any sign disdain or any arrogant reaction to their questions will see an "open season" on Gordon the Bottler Brown.
The press conference will take place at noon, he will face MPs in the Commons at 1530 and then address a mass meeting of all Labour MPs.
One thing is for sure, Gordon will not have been looking forward to today. It's make or break time.
UPDATE: First question from Adam Boulton is a beauty: Are you, as David Cameron said treating the public like fools? Gordon says he takes responsibility.
Nick Robinson: When the polls turned, you turned. Nice one Nick! that will be in the papers later.
I can't believe he is still even now waffling on and will not admit he bottled it over the polls.
Bob Roberts: Should NonDoms pay? Typical answer from Brown, guess what, it's still under review! what a shocker.
Some Aussie reporter: Will Visas be given to those that work for our armed forces. That cheeky sod Brown said he should announce that in parliament. It's a bit bloody late to realise that.
Jon Snow: Will you attack Iran: I will not rule that out. He's falling apart now, the waffle valve is fully open.
Should we have fixed termed parliaments: Answer: lots more waffle, basically saying No.
Will you rule out an election in 2008 and was it the polls that did it? Answer: Very unlikely (that's not an answer) and more spin.
I can't go on. It's like he's a tape recorder running a loop. If he says anything new I'll post it.
ABC: Will the removal of forces from Iraq make us safer or not? Did not answer the question. Yawn.
Repeat repeat repeat - it wasn't the polls - repeat repeat error error.
We've just had a "I can't remember" this just gets better.
They are not going too easy on him so far.
James Kirkup: Who first advised you to go for an election. Brown's answer: I won't go into that.
EU Treaty: Brown: There will be a parliamentary debate and I'm looking forward to that.
He's been asked about the polls again. He still maintains that he would have won the election and the polls had nothing to do with it. I think he trying to talk the time away.
That's all folks. I can't listen to this tripe any longer.
4 comments:
The BBC were spinning it this morning that Gordon was going to show a lot of time on his feet. (Why do the BBC just read out what they are given by Labour over the phone ?) He is somebody obsessed by his opponents and I think David Cameron's conference speech, which played so well in comparison to his, has really got to him. He wants to show he can plan to be spontaneous too !
He is apparently still puzzled by how David Cameron runs rings round him at PMQs.
I expect him to respond to the symptoms of his recent defeat, rather than the cause.
Expect Brownian meddling in Inheritance tax soon ...
Man in a shed,
What ever happens today I don't expect to hear the truth from Gordon Brown. I think if he continues to dodge and spin in front of the press he could be ending his own career. Unless of course, the press have been silenced overnight.
And I think you are correct in that he will steal Tory policies.
No Bottle - No Shame.
"The press are not at all happy with the way they have been snubbed".
Really? My impression is that the press exists to support the Left Elite political class. I gather that Brown was ensconced with Murdoch over the week end, which leads me to suspect a stitch-up. On the otherhand is it the Labour party or the junior cadet branch the Conservative-Socialist party that serves the press. At all events Lewis Carol would have had good material from all this.
Anon,
Who can tell anymore?
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