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Even politicians deserve summer holidays, a welcome break from the stress of office. But it is doubtful if Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, is enjoying his spell by the sea. Instead, he may be experiencing a touch of deja vu.
Just a year after he got the top job, he is being plotted against by a senior cabinet rival who fails to give him whole hearted support in public. Sounds all too familiar. Brown plotted for a decade against Tony Blair and now he is beginning to feel the loneliness of a leader whose fortunes are on the wane.
In theory the situation can be retrieved; an outstanding conference performance in the autumn, with the economy showing signs of recovery by Christmas and a possible scandal in the opposition party, (with the Conservatives this should never be ruled out) could see the opinion polls shift in Brown's favour. But Brown is nothing if not pragmatic, and he knows the chance of these events combining are as slim as Labour winning a by-election. Neither is it certain that Labour would do any better under a new leader. Nonetheless, Brown faces a stormy period after his seaside sojourn.
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