Will The Sun finally set on Brown?

On Thursday morning ConservativeHome gave The Sun a 'Brown-noser' award for its Budget coverage.  The Sun talked of an "income tax gift" from The Chancellor to the British people and its leading article warned that the Tories' opinion poll lead could easily melt in the spring sunshine.  Well... a Populus survey for The Sun's sister newspaper, The Times, shows that it's Brown's opinion poll standing which is facing the heat.  Just 11% of Populus' respondents expect to pay less tax than before the Budget and many more - 26% - fear that they will pay more tax.  "The most worrying finding for Mr Brown," says The Times, "is that the number of voters thinking that he will be a good prime minister has dropped from 40 to 30 per cent since last December."  Yesterday's Telegraph/ YouGov survey gave a similar message.

The irritation of The Sun at Mr Brown's smoke-and-mirrors Budget was, I think, revealed by Trevor Kavanagh, The Sun's veteran political commentator, at the end of this morning's Today programme.  Compared to the positive piece Mr Kavanagh wrote on Thursday morning he was very downbeat today.  The Sun won't have enjoyed being made to look a fool by Mr Brown.  There could be consequences.  Let's hope so. 

Comments

[Ted]

I think the Sun has realised that in their overboard support for Brown they were out of step with their readers - very quickly tried to recover while not losing face by articles on Tax Credits. Think it will make them more careful of supporting Brown but I don't think its a sea change; Murdoch is still a Brown supporter.

More bad news and his advosors may start telling him to drop Gordon but Brown has invested a lot in establishing relationships with News International people and they with him.

[Praguetory]

They can't have been tricked. It must have been an editorial decision.

[it's the sun snot won it!]

Did you notice the Sun's crafty reference to Brown's nose picking:

CHANCELLOR Gordon Brown’s popularity nosedived.....

Watch it here if you can stomach it:

http://www.guynews.tv/2007/03/bogey-man-cometh.html

[kingbongo]

The Sun's 2p Headline will reverberate in their offices for a long time. It was so clearly out of step with the truth and the effect on their readership; the Sun hates not reflecting its perception of its readers views. As an editorial decision I'm sure Ms Wade will be asked some searching questions by her paymasters. The Sun will support Brown if it thinks he's a winner, but for all their anti-DC stories their own readers are turning to Cameron and the Sun will too. Their real problem is having a die-hard socialist as editor and I would expect that to change in the next year - T Kavanagh for the editorship?

[Og]

I am convinced that Kavanagh is a traditional centre-right Tory. He holds competent, no-bullshit politicians in high esteem and has contempt for lightweights and headline-chasers.

So why the pro-Brown stance on Thursday morning (against logic, it must be said, as the Sun readership was almost bound to be worse off after the tax changes come into effect)?

The answer: Kavanagh doesn't rate Cameron. So underwhelmed is he by Dave, in fact, that his normally hyper-sensitive antennae have gone a bit haywire and he ends up spouting the rubbish he did on Thursday. No wonder he finds himself having to recant today.

But I understand his problem; I yield to no man in my contempt for Nu Labour, but the prospect of returning as sorry a Tory leadership as this to Number Ten is depressing in the extreme.

[evesham woman]

After watching that video of Gordon Brown's utterly revolting nose picking and (eeuuch) EATING IT live on television, this floating voter will be putting her cross on her ballot card firmly next to the Conservative candidate come the General Election.

The thought of that vile oaf Brown becoming leader of our country is an appalling prospect.

I expect millions more women feel the same way as I do particularly if they've seen or heard of Brown's disgusting behaviour.

[Chris]

Christ and I thought the politics of spin was bad enough, now we have the politics of disgusting personal habits!

[eugene]

Very little is being said about the fact that the low paid have had a large tax increase (almost double in the worst cases) by getting rid of the 10 p band.

This is something that flies in the face of decency and damages those who Labour are supposed to be standing up for.

I still cannot see any rhyme and reason why Brown did that...I am better off by £100 a year- he is certainly not going to bribe me with that sum...and he took it off the poorest to pay for it- he is going to lose their vote.

[Bel]

Could be that the Sun were tricked by the spin in the Budget. Serves them right. Then again, Brown wrote his budget with an eye on the next day's Sun headlines, so as far as that goes, he got what he wanted.

Neither Brown nor the Sun had reckoned with the intelligent, thinking British public, though, who saw through the deceit in the Budget.

[malcolm]

The Sun has only itself to blame. Most commentators were not fooled by this budget as they so often had been in the past.Then Sun chose to put the most ridiculously positive spin that they could the day after I wonder if (a)Murdoch forced them to do it (b)Rebecca Wade thought it might be a good idea but having seen the reaction elsewhere and after complaints from readers she has repented of her decision or (c) Kavanagh was not informed of the editorial decision and probably doesn't agree with it. I think (c) is most likely.

[David Sergeant]

"I still cannot see any rhyme and reason why Brown did that"

That's the problem, looking for rhyme and reason with this lot. Consider;

Blair offers to hand over to Browm providing Brown agrees to the Euro. Sod the country, economics, just think of yourself and your legacy.

Brown takes £7bil off the low paid to pull a stunt to get at the Tories. Sod the country, economics, just think of yourself and your next job.

Think about these guys, it explains Blair over Iraq and Brown over pensions, etc, etc. And DC says they are genuinely trying to help people!

[matt wright]

The reaction canvassing on the doors is that the budget was a con trick and people dislike Brown even more than Blair. To think Labour MPs were so economically illiterate that they cheered a budget that crippled lower paid workers! Idiots,

Matt

[David McEwan Hill]

If Labour takes a serious drubbing at the local elections and at the Scottish Election (which looks like Armageddon for them at the moment as it does for Scotland's Tories as well) Brown will be the major loser. It is very much in Tory interest to have Labour led by lame duck Brown however. I don't believe he can win a General Election.
It is very obvious that Tony Blair (and a substantial section of the Labour Leadership)don't want Brown as Leader or PM. Do you think Blair might call a snap General Election which he knows he will lose just to stuff Gordon?

[Yet Another Anon]

It is very obvious that Tony Blair (and a substantial section of the Labour Leadership)don't want Brown as Leader or PM.
Charles Clarke obviously doesn't but is no longer part of the Labour leadership. If anything I think Gordon Brown's support is strongest on the frontbenches and weaker on the backbenches. If there was major opposition a candidate would have come forward by now to stand against Gordon Brown, but it looks increasingly like it will be a choice between Gordon Brown and Michael Meacher with John McDonnell failing to win enough nominations. Frank Field possibly might throw his hat in the ring, but Gordon Brown will win easily - the Deputy Leadership in the main is about establishing position in a Gordon Brown frontbench. When Gordon Brown goes I'm sure that David Miliband will be in the running to succeed him along with Ed Balls, Caroline Flint and probably some people as yet relatively unknown.

[Rob]

Gordon Brown Might Get Re-elected if he;

1. Arrests Tony Blair for leading the UK into an illegal war on a pack of lies and misleading / dodgy intelligence, war crimes, murder, supporting terrorism.

2. Withdraws from Iraq and Afghanistan

3. Imposes sanctions on Israel for their attrocities against Palestine and Lebanon.

4. Issues arrest warrants for Bush, Chaney, Rumsfeld, Olmert and their accomplices on charges of war crimes, mass murder and ethnic cleansing.

5. Review our relationship with certain chimps in the USA, especially the extreme right.

This may restore some credibility to our Government.

The chances of the above happening are almost nil.. It's a pity, the same applies to conservative leadership.