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55% of Left leaning panellists agree Brown should go

Left or right?By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982

A poll of parliamentarians - including some in the cabinet - as well as journalists and political editors supports the belief that it is in the best interests of the Labour Party for Gordon Brown to stand down.

The poll, conducted by Phi100 (Britain's most authoritative survey of inside and expert poltical opinion) for PoliticsHome, found that 55% of Left leaning panellists agree that Labour would be better off electorally were the leadership to change.

Two thirds of all respondants said that the time is right for Brown to leave Number 10.

The only group on the panel who go against the majority view are the non-aligned, who say a coup would not be in the party's best interests by a margin of fifty five to forty five.

The survey was conducted yesterday before James Purnell made his shock announcement to resign from the Department for Work and Pensions.

Posted on Jun 05, 2009 at 10:43am


21 Comments · Show / Hide
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Who do you want then, Alex?

Johnson has already said he won't stand and he has just been rewarded with promotion?
Alan Giles @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
So 50% of your student mates are having a hissy fit, so what? It’s time people on this site grew up, started showing some stomach, and stop jockeying for political positions in opposition.
Steve Dryden @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Success has many friends. Losers have none.

Brown for teh win.
Charles Hardwidge @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
In the absence of any other volunteers, I'll be your friend Charles.

Just had a look at your domain by the way, and got the message "Safari can’t find the server." Impressive.
The Very Celia Stobart @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
You are Ed Balls and I claim my five pounds.
Ben @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Proving my point about childish hissy-fits there Ben.
Steve Dryden @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
This is the second poll in the last couple of weeks that suggests a majority of Labour supporters reckon Gordon should go. Neither of them are completely authoritative, but I'd be interested to see the recent polls of grassroots opinion saying he should stay.

In any case, while there's a good argument that Labourlist's position does actually reflect that of the majority of its intended audience, you, Charles Hardwidge and Chris Paul really don't have a legitimate complaint. It is, in fact, you who are throwing hissy fits - insulting the editor, calling for his resignation and so on - simply because you don't seem to find it tolerable that people should disagree with you.
Hugh Pettit @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
PS Purnell has jumped before he was sacked or sidelined IMO. And I called that almost 36 hours before it happened. HERE. Cameron and Clegg are talking in riddles. Both hoping for a General Election before more of their party's sleaze comes out un-mediated by their mates in the Telegraph.
Chris Paul @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Good call.

Yes, I agree. The Prime Minister did well at PMQ. He halted Cameron's advance and Clegg looked like he lost his potty. Of course the Tories will talk up elections and meltdown, duh. They're doing it to rattle Labour's cage and upset people. It's all phooey.

If you listen to enough Tory lies and attempts to talk things down (like they did with the economy) of course people are going to believe their rubbish and feel scared. It's what they want because they do not have your interests at heart and just want to win.

Instead of falling back the Prime Minister must do better next week. How long before Cameron starts to crack, and Clegg starts hesitating over which ass to kiss? If Labour look like credible winners the media and public opinion will change fast enough.
Charles Hardwidge @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Without fail, you insert "ass" again (no pun intended).

What does the Tao say about that?
Colin Murphy @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Sadly my other comment got canned by the over zealous manglement so I will have to try again.

One performance at PMQ's and you think he's turned a corner? What about the dismal performance over the last 12 years? Hey everyone it's ok Charles has spotted winky performing well at PMQ's its going to be OK.

Your unbalanced loathing of the Tories drives you to spend your life on this site - thats nice.
bbJ - Posting like Mr Kipling... exceedingly good stuff. @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Dale is reporting this as Labour List saying Brown Must Go. Idiots! Start mediating this sort of link properly. Who are left-leaning when it comes to the Politics Home panel? The blooming Lib Dems are for a start. Potty Polly is. For goodness sake stop serving up this third party garbage up as if it is the Labour List or Labour grassroots opinion.
Chris Paul @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
The Tories fired their biggest cannon and are probably hoping that Labour is routing. Er, there's a problem. People (like us) have a more strategically savvy understanding. We read books 'n' stuff. Ooops.

But, yeah. Another editorial gaff. Alex Smith seems to have a personal agenda with getting rid of Brown and pimping his Tory friends. He doesn't have the savvy to play with the big boys and is just blowing his own teams legs off. Resign.
Charles Hardwidge @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
The leaders of the Labour party are behaving shamefully. I am embarrassed to be associated with them. http://blog.matthewcain.co.uk/cant-back-gordon-brown-cant-back-coup/
Matthew Cain @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Why the sudden moral indignation? These same leaders have been lying and spinning for years about everything from the EU Constitution and "prudence" of public expenditure (while spending went through the roof) through to WMD and smears about the psychological flaws of the wives of opposition politicians.

The fact that these rats are now leaving a sinking ship should come as no surprise to anyone. This is the end of a shameful chapter in British history, when a healthy world-beating economy was ground down through stealth taxes and red tape. The world's best pension provision was wrecked by a greedy Chancellor who thought that lots of money in the good years could be bled from pension funds with no future consequence for the individuals who were relying on this for a well-earned retirement. And in the fag-end of this spinning incompetent administration that promised to end the politics of sleaze, we learn about the worst systemic corruption in living memory.

They're behaving shamefully alright. I just don't see why you should suddenly comment on this now.
Phil Mill @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Since when should journalists/political editors decide what is in the Labour Parties or any other Parties for that
matter, best interests?
I think if you had a poll many people might decide it's in various Newspapers/TV progammes interests to lose thier
journalists or political editors.
It is not in anybody's (except the Liberal or Conservative Parties) best interests for Gordon Brown to resign.
The very fact that Tory supporters are crying out on this website for him to quit is evidence enough.
Maybe they should spend more of thier time devising policy....
Ralph Baldwin @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
The problem is it's not the Tory supporters who want him to go - they want him to limp on! See James' comment below as a typical example. The Tories efficiently knifed Thatcher in the back when it was clear her time was up, and I'm personally hoping that labour will learn from that.
Robert Michaels @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
Do you think the rules concerning a leadership challenge need to be changed?

The problem here appears to be an inability to act against a potentially unwanted leader. If the rules were less stringent it would be easier for MPs to act against him, if they wanted.

The real positive would be that if nobody were to act against him there would be less of a question mark against his authority.

Just a thought.
Ben @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
But they can't/won't do anything about it, can/will they?

The best course of action for Labour, in the long-term, is for Gordon Brown to call a general election as soon as possible.

Anything less is unimportant to the public. Democracy is not a means to an end.
Ben @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
My local Tory candidate talks dreamily about Gordon Brown clinging to power for another year. It would mean he would probably win his seat, what is normally a safe Labour seat. Why can these Socialists not see that Brown is pure toxic, to use Derek Drapers phrase, its “absolutely brilliant!”

For every month Brown stays you are probably going to lose another 5-10 Labour seats.
James - Man of the Right @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago
more like 10-15
Max Sceptic @ 60 weeks and 1 day ago