Overwhelming Support for Brown.

The leadership contest is effectively over, as an overwhelming number of MPs have chosen to support Mr. Brown, denying left-wing candidate John McDonnell even the chance of standing in the whole party ballot. The most tossed around line is that Gordon Brown was 'humbled' by the extent of his support, but most of the party had been aware for some time that it would be difficult for a radical candidate to secure support. Both critics inside of the party and those in opposition have came out to comment on the lack of democracy involved in the 'coronation'. Mr Brown responded today, commenting that

"At the end of the day it may be embarrassing, perhaps, to have so much support, but... I think you have got to accept that as the verdict of the parliamentary party."

The fact is that Mr. Brown has shown the nation that he has the confidence of his peers, and the parliamentary party has shown us that despite rebellions and supposed unrest, they are still united in common purpose. That purpose however has yet to be revealed in significant detail; after all, the chancellor has been noticeably reticent in revealing the full extent of his plans. However, I think that the party, and indeed the nation, can be confident that a wide range of policies and reforms will be unveiled shortly before the handover on the 27th. As he said recently,

"In the weeks and months ahead, my task is to show I have the new ideas, the vision and the experience to earn the trust of the British people."

Although full details are obviously not yet revealed, I think it's safe to assume that we will be seeing major reforms on constitutional affairs, along with some new initiatives into housing and environmentalism. The challenge is- as the Economist (May 12th) points out, is to

"...rebuild the traditional centre-left - which is split between Labour, the Lib Dems and the nationalist parties in Wales and Scotland - Whilst preventing the Tories' tightening grip on the South from turning into a lock."

It's difficult to imagine how Mr. Brown would go about achieving these seemingly mutually exclusive goals, but after this weeks show of unity, we can safely say he has a good chance.