Happy birthday Mr Brown
Friday, 20 February 2009 12:01 AM
By politics.co.uk staff
It's the prime minister's 58th birthday today, but events are conspiring to stop him enjoying it, with recession and the global economic crisis still dominating the agenda.
Facts about exactly what he will be doing during the day are low on the ground, however.
politics.co.uk was directed to the prime minister's constituency office, where he will be spending the day. But staff there would only confirm he will be doing a mixture of work and relaxation.
They refused to answer questions about his activity in Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath.
Gordon brown returned from Italy last night after holding talks with prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, and the Pope.
He travels to Berlin over the weekend for talks with German chancellor Angela Merkel. The two are considered the intellectuals of the European leadership.
Mr Brown has had a fairly typical week so far, with questions about his leadership mixing in with embryonic Cabinet conspiracies and a global economic meltdown.
Faced with repeated questions about his position during his monthly press conference on Wednesday, the prime minister refused to address remarks about possible leadership bids by deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman.
Mr Harman is reported to be seeking the backing of Ed Balls, currently children's secretary but a long-time Brown ally in the Treasury.
The new bout of leadership speculation follows a series of poor poll results for Labour, with the Tories building on their lead.
Last week, the Conservatives opened up a 20 point lead over Labour, according to Ipsos-Mori.
But political analysts warn against writing Mr Brown off. Over the course of his career, the former chancellor has recovered from political ruin more than once, not least during his time as prime minister where his approval ratings have oscillated wildly.
The prime minister is staking his political reputation on securing "unprecedented global cooperation" over the next few months in an effort to tackle the economic crisis.
World leaders come to London in April for the G20 meeting, the climax of Mr Brown's plans to secure a coordinated response to the crisis.
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