Gordon Brown set for party showdown

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown played up his economic credentials yesterday to quieten persistent calls to step down from within his ruling Labour Party as it meets for its annual conference.

Behind in the polls and with his economic reputation under scrutiny against a backdrop of a global financial downturn, Brown is fighting for his political life.

Writing in the Guardian, Brown sought to emphasise the role his government had played in tackling the financial shockwaves, despite the collapse of Northern Rock last year, the forced merger of another last week, and the economy tottering on the brink of recession.

"Just as when we stopped Northern Rock going to the wall, we took the necessary and decisive action this week to protect stability and keep the financial system moving," Brown wrote.

"We have acted to secure people's savings, support the housing market, and underpin liquidity in the banking sector."

It was an open pitch by the former finance minister to talk up his economic skills on the opening day of his party's decision-making gathering. Anything less than a command performance when he addresses party delegates is likely to see Brown's popularity further dented at a time he faces a low-level revolt within his party.

More than a dozen Labour members of parliament called for Brown to stand down or submit to a leadership contest last week, piling pressure on the prime minister just 15 months after he succeeded Tony Blair without an election.

Opinion polls show Brown is the least popular prime minister in 70 years, and his party lags the opposition Conservatives by up to 28 points, a deficit that would translate into a heavy electoral defeat if an election were held.

Brown does not have to call the next election until June 2010. Given his and his party's lack of popularity, and the economic and financial problems affecting the nation, he is likely to wait as long as possible before calling it.

Instead, he hopes the conference can revive fortunes and party unity, and perhaps lay the groundwork for a fightback. "People are beginning to see again that politics is not a permanent referendum on a government, but a choice between competing philosophies," Brown wrote.

"It is only a Labour government that is able to act now to tackle the instability in the economy and provide the security that businesses and families need."