Glad for a breather-Gordon gets time to reflect

As Parliament begins its Easter recess today,Gordon Brown is probably thankful for the break and not because his expenses are about to be revealed.

Adam Boulton sums up the situation

Suddenly, it's Labour looking rattled and the Tories are leaving Westminster for the two-week post-Easter recess with a spring in their step. Why? Because of an end-of-term outbreak of dissent in Labour ranks on tax policy.

This morning the media report that he is under pressure from backbenchers,the front page of the Guardian reporting that

Gordon Brown was facing the first serious test of his political authority yesterday when a senior minister attacked his plans to raise alcohol duty in the budget and he was forced to respond to a tax revolt by backbench MPs.
To defuse escalating concern over the centrepiece of his final budget as chancellor, Brown's whips promised to look again at claims that 5 million poorer households were being hurt by the abolition of the 10p income tax band.
A group of normally loyal backbenchers had tabled an early day motion criticising the impact of the abolition and rejecting assurances given by ministers about its impact

.

The Telegraph meanwhile says

Gordon Brown yesterday appeared determined to press ahead with plans to reclassify cannabis as a class B drug against the recommendations of his own advisers.A review by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs looks likely to find that cannabis should retain its class C status.

As at Christmas another opportunity to take stock,Peter Riddle in the Times believes

The malaise is real and it is widespread. The Brown Government is in deep trouble. It is not just the polls, although they are bad enough, with three out of the last five putting Labour at below 30 per cent.

and

The rot goes to the heart of government, to No 10, and the sense that something is seriously wrong has spread, ominously, to Labour MPs, not just disgruntled ex-ministers but normal loyalists

So will two weeks be enough to put it right.They will be dominated by local election and the London mayoral election where Labour is under immense pressure

So is it all going wrong,well according to Iain Martin perhaps not so as he gives 5 pointers

1) For all the infighting, and too late in the day for the budget, Number 10 has realised at Carter’s prompting that the ‘stability in the face of global turbulence’ mantra is an insult to the intelligence of the electorate. Voters fearing economic pain want someone to stick up for them, a party which will take practical steps to help them through the bad times. Whether ministers can craft the measures required is a different matter.

2) The London mayoral race is far from over, as the ICM poll giving Boris a one point lead over Ken shows.

3) The cabinet is pretty united, despite skirmishes which promise an almighty fight eventually in the next generation over who will be the successor to Gordon Brown (Balls, D. Miliband or E. Miliband?). Other members of the cabinet have decided that the worst thing would be to start fighting with each other. Call me a cynic, but this might not last.

4) The Tories have come close, but they need to get to 45 points in the polls and stick for six months.

5) The government hasn’t done anything really stupid for several days now