A little over half a year in, George Parker and Alex Barker offered an in-depth report card on Brown’s management of the Number 10 machine in yesterday’s FT. It doesn’t pull many punches:
Supporters of Gordon Brown speak of “chaos” – and that is one of the gentler words used to describe the past few months at 10 Downing Street under Britain’s prime minister. His officials have sometimes been seen in nearby pubs red-eyed with fatigue and – occasionally – with the sting of tears. Their complaints are of a prime minister shouting at the typists, taking out his frustration on his closest aides and unable to take decisions. For them, Mr Brown has been at the helm of the GST: the “Good Ship Titanic”. Even loyal ministers admit that things inside a dysfunctional Downing Street were becoming “ridiculous”.
There’s no new information in the article, but it’s still worth reading as a thorough stock-taking survey.
