Gordon Brown, Superstar

“Gordon Brown, Gordon Brown
Who are you, what have you sacrificed
Gordon Brown, Superstar

Do you think you're what you say you are?”

The debacle in which we now find ourselves is due, in part, to Gordon Brown’s blind ambition; his burning desire to be Prime Minister. Why is it that this seems to have been forgotten of late? At one time all the talk was about how Gordon Brown and Tony Blair had cooked up their little pact, how Brown was the PM elect and it was all about handing over power. Well of course power was handed over, but it seems it was under a degree of duress. Would Tony Blair have gone if there hadn’t have been a degree of threat? Brown’s arrogance, his absolute belief in who he thinks he is, is a major factor in the mess in which we now find ourselves. Leadership is not about shutting yourself off in your bunker, about believing you know best. It’s about listening, inspiring, delegating and having the right team around you – this is Labour’s Achilles heal.

Brown having got the job has been proved wanting. This intellectual colossus keeps on repeating the same old mantra about listening to people and having a vision. Yet he’s obviously not hearing what’s been said and as for his vision it’s clearly impaired. We have been lumbered with a man who may, or may not be the financial genius – although given some of his moves it’s clear that even that is questionable.

Watching Harriet Harman on Andrew Marr this morning with Huw Edwards doing the honours was actually pitiful. All she kept saying was - it’s a prefect financial storm and Gordon is the one to keep on as captain. Only Gordon and his team can carry us through to salvation. The high point of her argument was when she said, “People from around the world ring up Gordon Brown for advice.” Well let’s hope no one is following it. You only have to look at the way Gordon Brown conducts himself around other world leaders to see that here is a man who just doesn’t have it.

If Gordon is so great how come he didn’t see some of this coming. It’s been obvious for several years that the house market would hit the buffers. You cannot keep having prices move the way they have been without it catching up with people’s pockets - people still have to pay their mortgages. It cannot all be fuelled by people in the upper middle reaches of the market downsizing or moving away from the more expensive areas; that has been one of the really damaging aspects of property prices in rural areas.

Whatever Brown does Labour are screwed. There’s no one who can take his place and he cannot win. The unholy pact between Brown and Blair is what has ultimately done for them. They thought they had it all so well planned, but they hadn’t quite accounted for the fact that Gordon Brown as well as not being very well liked is actually proving he’s unable to lead. You can learn leadership; you can hone the skills, but I’m afraid Brown just does not have what it takes. Instead of learning from Blair he just despised him for keeping him from what he prized most. Gordon Brown is no superstar; he’s just damaged goods.