Daily Mail 04th October 2008
Peter Mandelson on Brown: 'We've had ups and downs but we get on fine'
Gordon Brown hauled Labour back to its worst days of sleaze after he brought Peter Mandelson back for a jaw-dropping third job in the Cabinet.
The return of the double-disgraced 'Prince of Darkness' in a reshuffle to address the economic crisis stunned and horrified Westminster.
The Prime Minister's claim that the return of Mr Mandelson - who will take a peerage to serve as Business Secretary in the Lords - was 'in the national interest' was met with incredulity.
Asked at 10 Downing Street this morning what he felt Mr Mandelson would bring to his Government, Mr Brown replied: 'I think the national interest comes before any party politics and any personality politics, and I think today we see a Labour Government which is determined to work with business and to work with the rest of the community to deal with the real challenges that we face as a result of these global changes.
'I think you see us putting a Government together that is capable of bringing all the expertise from the business sector as well as from the area of Government and from the European Union to enable us to take people fairly through these difficult times, to stabilise the financial system and to move on, with Britain leading the rest of the world out of these difficulties.'
It capped an extraordinary day in which Mr Brown appeared to have put his future in the hands of his biggest enemy in politics with a striking reordering of his team that marked a victory for Tony Blair and his allies.
He gambled on Mr Mandelson's strong business credentials and keen political instincts to bring some firepower to his weakened government.
And familiar faces such as Margaret Beckett were recalled in an 'all hands to the pumps' effort to stem the Tory tide and avoid a General Election wipeout.
A poll in the Telegraph showed that some voters are starting to return to Labour amid the global financial crisis.
The poll puts the Tories on 45 per cent, up a point from two weeks ago before the annual party conferences.
Labour is on 31 per cent, up form 24 per cent and the Lib Dems are on 15 per cent down from 20 per cent.
Despite Labour's rise in support, the Tories' lead would still be enough to give them a majority at a general election.
Third coming: Peter Mandelson back outside Number 10 today after being invited to become Business Secretary
The reshuffle featured the return of another Government figure linked to sleaze in the past
Lord Drayson, who returns as Science Minister from a year off racing motor cars, ran into controversy in 2002 after his Powderject company was granted a £32million contract to provide flu vaccines just months after he made a £50,000 donation to Labour.
And the appointment of new City Minister Paul Myners raised eyebrows. He is a director of GLG, one of the biggest hedge funds in the world, which has the largest short position in Bradford&Bingley, having sold short tens of millions of shares in the troubled bank.
To underscore a sense of national emergency, Mr Brown announced the creation of a 'War Cabinet' for the economy.
The National Economic Council, chaired by Mr Brown and including Mr Mandelson, will meet twice weekly in Downing Street's emergency command room.
Mr Mandelson had been Trade Secretary for barely six months when in December 1998 he was forced to quit over a secret loan of £373,000 from his ministerial colleague Geoffrey Robinson.
The money was used to buy an expensive house in Notting Hill and Mr Mandelson was compromised because his department -Trade and Industry - was investigating Mr Robinson's business dealings.
Tony Blair brought him back in October 1999, as Northern Ireland Secretary, but he was forced to quit a second time in January 2001.
This time it was alleged he had intervened in a passport application for Dome supporters, the Hinduja brothers. Inquiries later cleared him of any wrongdoing.
Mr Blair then appointed him EU Trade Commissioner in Brussels. Yesterday he quit that job.
With two Cabinet resignations already under his belt, Mr Mandelson joked that this would be 'third time lucky', but there were doubts over his ability to work with Mr Brown.
Comeback kid: Peter Mandelson with Gordon Brown in 1998 when he was made Trade Secretary by Tony Blair. The pair have been sworn enemies for years
While both men said they had set aside their past differences, behind the scenes it is known that Labour's most notorious spinner has been brutally candid about the Prime Minister's failings.
Challenged over his fractious relationship with Mr Brown, Mr Mandelson admitted the pair had had their 'ups and downs' and added: 'We have also known each other for over 20 years and originally we worked very well together and I am very proud to have been invited to serve in his Government.
'I get on with him fine. He is doing an exceptionally good job in what are very, very challenging conditions for our country.'
Mr Brown ignored questions about Mr Mandelson's past and praised his deadly rival's 'brilliant' work in Brussels.
Asked how he could answer the charge that he had taken leave of his senses in giving such a divisive figure a Cabinet post, Mr Brown said: 'What I have decided is what I believe is in the national interest.'
In: John Hutton is moving to the Ministry of Defence. Out: Des Browne refused to move and is leaving the Government
Mr Mandelson has taken an enormous pay cut to return to Government.
During his stint aboard the Brussels gravy train, he has raked in a salary, pension and perks which dwarf his £138,000 a year as a Cabinet Minister. It is believed he will return to his home in fashionable Primrose Hill, North London.
Debilitated by a torrent of attacks on his leadership, Mr Brown yesterday made no attempt to shift any of the Cabinet heavyweights in the top jobs who are close to Mr Blair and who have been jockeying to succeed him.
Instead he carried out a reordering of the lower ranks which saw only Des Browne and Ruth Kelly leave the Government for the back benches. Miss Kelly confirmed that she is standing down as MP for Bolton West at the next election.
Some brutal horse-trading forced Mr Brown to remove his most trusted media adviser, but in exchange he has brought his most loyal Commons lieutenant into the Cabinet.
In: Chief Whip Geoff Hoon is taking over at Transport. Out: Ruth Kelly leaves after resigning. She is also stepping down as an MP
Damian McBride agreed to stand aside as the Prime Minister's political spokesman inside Downing Street after senior ministers demanded his removal. In return, the Prime Minister gets Nick Brown back in the Cabinet as Chief Whip.
Ed Miliband, buoyed by a strong performance at Labour conference last week, is promoted to lead a new Energy and Climate Change department which was hailed by green campaigners as a major step forward in the fight against global warming.
Last night Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague said the reshuffle demonstrated a 'stunning failure of judgment by Gordon Brown'.
He said: 'In bringing back Peter Mandelson - the man who created Labour spin - he has broken his promise to govern in an honest and open way.'
But former Cabinet minister David Blunkett described the appointment as a 'masterstroke'.
And John Cridland of the CBI added: 'The Department for Business must have a heavyweight political big hitter at the Cabinet table, and we are encouraged that Peter Mandelson is returning to this role.'
The devoted lieutenant
The last time Nick Brown was Chief Whip, he was effectively sacked for causing Peter Mandelson's first Cabinet resignation.
After little more than a year in the job following Labour's 1997 election victory, Tony Blair demoted him to the backwater of the Ministry of Agriculture.
It followed the exposure of Mr Mandelson's secret home loan which triggered the downfall of Mr Blair's ally. Many blamed Mr Brown as the source of the story.
Nick Brown: A loyal fan of Gordon Brown
Nick Brown's pleasant demeanour belies a quiet inner menace which will be crucial in his return to the role of corralling rebellious Labour MPs.
He is a fiercely tribal politician who was a key mover in crowning Gordon Brown as Prime Minister.
He is devoted to his namesake and is widely regarded in Westminster as the PM's chief lieutenant.
Nick Brown canvassed support for Mr Brown's 1994 leadership bid and has claimed that Tony Blair 'stole' the job from him.
Why McPoison had to go
His enemies call him McPoison. His friends refer to him as Mad Dog. Damian McBride's departure yesterday as Gordon Brown's chief spin doctor was a vital component in the reshuffle.
Since 2003, the former civil servant has been far more than a spokesman for Mr Brown. He has been a key player both in government and the Labour Party.
Damian McBride: Brown's spin doctor has gone, much to the relief of his enemies
The 34-year-old Cambridge graduate gave up a career at the Treasury to become Mr Brown's political adviser.
But he was blamed by ministers for a run of stories said to have damaged the Government, and accused of running a vicious campaign against Mr Brown's enemies. Ministers demanded his removal.
Mr McBride knew the oldest rule in politics, that when a spin doctor becomes the story, he is no longer useful to his master, and asked for a move.
Mr Brown reluctantly agreed to let him step aside, and so finds himself deprived of the services of one of his most effective operators.
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