Premiership of Gordon Brown

Gordon Brown's term as the prime minister of the United Kingdom began on 27 June 2007 when he accepted an invitation of Queen Elizabeth II to form a government, replacing Tony Blair, and ended on 11 May 2010 upon his resignation. While serving as prime minister, Brown also served as the first lord of the treasury, the minister for the civil service, and the leader of the Labour Party.

Brown used the term "New Labour" to distinguish his pro-market policies from the more socialist policies which the party had espoused in the past, though Brown's style of government differed to that of his predecessor. Brown rescinded some of the policies which had been introduced or were planned by Blair's administration. He remained committed to close ties with the United States and to the war in Iraq, although he established an inquiry into the reasons for Britain's participation in the conflict. He proposed a "government of all the talents" which would involve co-opting leading personalities from industry and professional occupations into government positions. Brown also appointed Jacqui Smith as the UK's first female home secretary, while Brown's former position as chancellor of the exchequer was taken over by Alistair Darling.

Brown's government introduced monetary and fiscal policies to help keep the banks afloat during the financial crisis in 2008, and as a result the United Kingdom's national debt increased dramatically. The Government took majority shareholdings in Northern Rock and Royal Bank of Scotland, both of which experienced financial difficulties. Large amounts of money were injected into several other banks, including newly merged HBOS-Lloyds TSB, which received £17 billion. Domestic policies focusing on education, employment and health were introduced by the administration. The Labour Party was persuaded to give Gurkhas settlement rights in Britain by the campaign of actress Joanna Lumley and attracted criticism for its handling of the Scottish Government's release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahithe only person to have been convicted over the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.

During the first four months of his premiership, Brown enjoyed a substantial lead in the polls. His popularity amongst the public may have been because his handling of numerous serious events during his first few weeks as prime minister, including two attempted terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow at the end of June 2007. However, between the end of 2007 and September 2008, his popularity fell significantly; two contributing factors were believed to be his perceived change of mind over plans to call a general election in October 2007 and his handling of the 10p tax rate cut in 2008, which led to allegations of weakness and dithering. His unpopularity led eight Labour MPs to call for a leadership contest in September 2008, less than 15 months into his premiership.

The threat of a leadership contest receded due to his perceived strong handling of the global financial crisis in October, but his popularity hit an all-time low and his position became increasingly untenable after the May 2009 expenses scandal and Labour's poor results in the 2009 Local and European elections. Brown's cabinet began to rebel; there were several key resignations in the run up to local elections in June 2009. However, Brown was backed by his party. He faced a second attempt to launch a leadership challenge by former Cabinet colleagues Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt in January 2010, but the plot failed to gather momentum and Brown remained as both Labour leader and prime minister to lead his party into the 2010 general election. The election resulted in a hung parliament, with the Conservative party winning the largest number of seats.

Brown remained prime minister while the Liberal Democrats entered separate negotiations with Labour and the Conservatives with a view to forming a coalition government. He announced his intention to resign on 10 May 2010 to help broker a Labour-Liberal Democrat deal. However, this became increasingly unlikely and on 11 May, Brown announced his resignation as prime minister and Labour Party leader. After the Conservative Party formed a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats, Brown resigned as Prime Minister and Labour Party leader. He was succeeded as Prime Minister by David Cameron and as Labour leader by Ed Miliband.

Bid for Labour leadership

On 11 May 2007, after months of speculation, Gordon Brown formally announced his bid for the Labour leadership and replaced Tony Blair as Prime Minister on 27 June 2007. On 16 May, Channel 4 News announced that Andrew MacKinlay had nominated Brown, giving him 308 nominationsenough to avoid a leadership contest. A BBC report states that the decisive nomination was made by Tony Wright with MacKinlay yet to nominate at that point.

Following Blair's announcement of his resignation and Brown's bid for leadership, the Labour Party rose in popularity in the polls, gaining three points after months of low polls and trailing behind the opposition Conservative Party. However, Labour subsequently lost this lead.

Brown launched his campaign website the same day as formally announcing his bid for leadership, titled "Gordon Brown for Britain".

In 2007, one year before the global economic crisis, Brown delivered his final Mansion House speech as Chancellor before moving into Number 10; he told financiers, "A new world order has been created", that everyone needed to follow the City's "great example", and "an era that history will record as the beginning of a new Golden Age".

Core policies

Brown was careful not to imply that there would be any reversals in the key areas of Blair's social policy, or any radical breakaway from New Labour. He did propose a different style of government than that of Blair's much-criticised 'presidential-style' government. Brown was unclear on certain parts of his policies, but he said that a Brown-led government would introduce the following;:
* Sleaze-busting package: Following the cash for honours scandal, Brown said he would reduce sleaze, which led to the belief that Brown would introduce a new Ministerial Code that would set out clear standards of behaviour for ministers. Brown said that he intended to strip the Prime Minister of some the powers conferred on it by royal prerogativeincluding the ability to declare war. This would give Parliament more powers and rights to vet and veto appointments to senior public positions, in a bid to eliminate cronyism.
* Environment: Brown pledged to make Britain a "world leader" in combating climate change; there would be large cuts in carbon emissions that were bigger than those of most developed nations.
* Constitutional reform: Brown did not clarify whether he proposed a written constitutionsomething the UK has never hador a looser bill of rights. He said when announcing his bid that he wanted a "better constitution" that was "clear about the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen in Britain today". He planned to set up an all-party convention which would consider new powers for Parliament and the rebalancing of powers between Whitehall and local government. Brown also said that he would allow Parliament to decide whether British troops are sent into action.
* Housing: It was suggested that House Planning restrictions could be relaxed. Brown said that he wanted to release more land and make house ownership easier with shared equity schemes. He backed a proposal to build five eco-towns, each housing between 10,000 and 20,000 peopleup to 100,000 new homes.
* Health: Brown said he wanted doctors' surgeries to open at weekends, and GPs to be on-call in the evenings. Doctors had been given the right to opt out of out-of-hours care two years before under a controversial pay deal signed by then-Health Secretary John Reid, that awarded them a 22 percent pay rise in 2006. Lord Ara Darzi was appointed to review NHS service delivery, especially in London. Proposed policies included the induction of polyclinics, which would be open to tender and possibly run by private companies.
* Foreign policy: Brown remained committed to the Iraq War, but said that he would "learn the lessons" from mistakes made in Iraq. He remained supportive of American policies but said that he wanted a "solid but not slavish" relationship with the US.
* SOCPA: Brown intended to repeal sections 132 to 137 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, thereby enabling protest within the area around Parliament without prior permission from the Metropolitan Police.
* ID cards: Brown's campaign manager had said that one of Blair's unpopular key policies would be reviewed. The cost of the £5.5 billion identity card scheme was rapidly increasing. However, Brown said on 12 May that he would continue with it.
* Europe: Brown supported the EU Reform Treaty and repeatedly dismissed calls for a referendum on the issue.

First acts as prime minister

On his first day in office, Brown rescinded the Order in Council which gave his predecessor's political advisers Alastair Campbellwho left office in 2003and Jonathan Powell, authority to issue instructions to civil servants. Brown's senior advisers, including Spencer Livermore, Sue Nye, Mike Ellam and Gavin Kelly, continued to exert considerable influence on the government. Brown's other senior advisers included former Treasury Special Advisers Damian McBride, Jonathan Ashworth and Jo Dipple, and former senior Labour Party official Fiona Gordon.

Brown faced a major prime-ministerial challenge two days after entering office, when two unexploded car bombs were discovered in London on 29 June. The following day, a car was driven into the entrance of the main terminal of Glasgow International Airport in a second apparent terrorist attack, causing a fire and considerable damage to the building. Brown was born in Glasgow, leading to speculation that the attacks were motivated against him. As a result of both the London and Glasgow incidents, Brown chaired emergency COBRA meetings to review plans to protect the British public. He also spoke to the First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond regarding the incidents.

On 3 July, Brown announced a programme of constitutional reforms, including limits to the powers of the prime minister, extensions to the powers of Parliament, a consultation on a bill of rights and a possible lowering of the minimum voting age. On 7 July 2007, he announced £14m in aid for the flood-hit areas in the north of England. On 11 July, Brown announced that housing would be at the top of his political agenda, promising that three million new homes would be built by 2020.

Domestic reforms

The minimum statutory entitlement for paid holidays was increased from 4.8 to 5.6 weeks per annum, and Child Benefit was disregarded in calculating income for Housing and Council Tax Benefit as a means of improving work incentives and the incomes of many low-income families. Parents with children up to the age of 16 were given the statutory right to request flexible working arrangements.

Extra penalties for employers paying wages below the national minimum were introduced, while the September Guarantee was extended to 17-year-olds in 2008. The Mortgage Repossessions (Protection of Tenants Etc.) Act of 2010 created protection for unauthorised tenants. The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 granted new powers to tackle erosion and "underwrote a path to run round England's coastland", while the Community Energy Saving Programme (2009) obliged energy suppliers and generators to deliver energy efficiency measures in certain low income areas.

Compulsory personal, social and health education was introduced in 2009. The Additional Paternity Leave Regulations 2010 provided parents with the option to split the year's maternity leave the mother could then take from her employment, allowing parents greater flexibility with childcare arrangements. An extension of 10–15 hours free nursery provision for disadvantaged 2-year-olds was also carried out. Between 2008 and 2010, additional money was put into tax credits for families with children, while child poverty fell during Brown's last year as Prime Minister.

The Education and Skills Act 2008 introduced measures to extend educational opportunities and raised the school-leaving age to 18, while the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 introduced a statutory framework for apprenticeships and the right to an apprenticeship for suitably qualified 16- to 18-year-olds. The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 created a new Homes and Communities Agency tasked with improving the supply and quality of housing in England. The Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007 entitled disabled people and those past retirement age to free travel on local buses at off-peak times anywhere in England. The Pensions Act 2007 and the Pensions Act 2008 introduced improvements to pension provisions, while the Employment Act 2008 strengthened existing legislation governing working conditions.

Brown promised free prescription cancer medicines, which became available in January 2009, although concerns were raised in September that year that many patients entitled to such prescriptions were not benefiting from them. A Health in Pregnancy Grant which provided financial assistance to expectant mothers was also introduced. In 2008, a Local Housing Allowance for people on low incomes or on benefits who were renting from private landlords was introduced.

The Autism Act 2009 was passed to improve services and support for adults with autism. The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 was intended to improve the workplace rights of people working for employment agencies. The Equality Act 2010 required equal treatment in access to employment, private and public services. The Child Poverty Act 2010 set targets for governments to eliminate child poverty.

"Government of All the Talents"

Brown appointed his first cabinet in the first few days of his premiership. David Miliband was appointed Foreign Secretary while Alistair Darling succeeded Brown as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Brown's team also included Jacqui Smith, who became Britain's first female Home Secretary. Jack Straw was appointed to the new role of Secretary of State for Justice. Brown advocated a "Government of All the Talents" (GOAT) in which people who had not previously been members of the Labour Party but had expertise in specific areas would be appointed as ministers. Consequently, five new ministers, including Sir Ara Darzia consultant surgeon who became a health minister in the House of Lords, Sir Digby Jonesa former director general of the CBI who became minister of state for trade and investment and Sir Alan Westthe former head of the Royal Navy who became a security minister at the Home Office.

Foreign policy

Brown's first overseas trip as prime minister was to Berlin, where he spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In a speech to the Labour Friends of Israel in April 2007, Brownwhose father was the chairman of the Church of Scotland's Israel Committee spoke of his long-standing interest in Israel and the Jewish community. He said that he "had a very clear view from household slides and projectors about the history of Israel, about the trials and tribulations of the Jewish people, about the enormous suffering and loss during the Holocaust, as well as the extraordinary struggle that he described to me of people to create this magnificent homeland".

Brown did not attend the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics on 8 August 2008 in Beijing, and instead attended the closing ceremony on 24 August 2008. Brown had been under intense pressure from human rights campaigners to send a message to China, concerning the 2008 Tibetan unrest. His decision not to attend the opening ceremony was not an act of protest; the decision was made several weeks in advance of the Games.

Diplomatic relationship with the US

There was widespread speculation on the nature of the UK's relationship with the US under Brown's government. Brown's close aide Douglas Alexander said in a Washington D.C speech, "In the 21st century, strength should be measured on what we can build together ... we need to demonstrate by our deeds, words and our actions that we are internationalist, not isolationist, multilateralist, not unilateralist, active and not passive, and driven by core values, consistently applied, not special interests". This was widely reported as both a policy shift and a message to the US.

However, Downing Street's spokesman strongly denied the suggestion that Alexander was trying to distance Britain from US foreign policy and show that Britain would not necessarily, in Tony Blair's words, stand "shoulder to shoulder" with George W. Bush over future military interventions. The spokesman said, "I thought the interpretation that was put on Douglas Alexander's words was quite extraordinary. To interpret this as saying anything at all about our relationship with the U.S. is nonsense."

Brown personally clarified his position. He said, "We will not allow people to separate us from the United States of America in dealing with the common challenges that we face around the world. I think people have got to remember that the relationship between Britain and America and between a British prime minister and an American president is built on the things that we share, the same enduring values about the importance of liberty, opportunity, the dignity of the individual. I will continue to work, as Tony Blair did, very closely with the American administration."

European Union

Brown continued to be dogged by controversy about not holding a referendum on the EU Treaty of Lisbon. On the morning of 13 December 2007, Foreign Secretary David Miliband stood in for Brown at the official signing ceremony in Lisbon of the EU Reform Treaty, which was attended by all other European heads of government. At the time, Brown was appearing before the Liaison Committee; he went to Portugal to sign the treaty that afternoon. Brown was criticised by opponents on both sides of the House and in the press. His critics said that neither Brown nor Labour had a mandate to ratify the treaty without public consent. Conservative leader David Cameron pointed to Labour's 2005 manifesto, which had pledged to give the British public a referendum on the original EU Constitution. Brown said the Treaty differed on significant points from the Constitution and was no longer a constitution but an ordinary treaty, and as such did not require a referendum. He also responded with plans for a lengthy debate on the topic and stated that he believed the document to be too complex to be decided by referendum.

Iraq Inquiry

Brown remained committed to the Iraq War, but said in June 2007 that he would learn from the mistakes made in Iraq. Brown said in a letter published on 17 March 2008 that the UK would eventually hold an inquiry into the war. The Iraq Inquiry

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