Posted on 06/04/2009 2:34:46 PM PDT by Petronski
In a resignation letter released to several newspapers, Mr Purnell called on Gordon Brown to step aside for the good of the Labour Party, saying that his continued leadership makes a Conservative victory more, not less, likely.
The senior Blairite's departure follows the loss of four ministers from Mr Brown's Cabinet in the past three days, amid reports of backbenchers collecting signatures demanding his removal.
It is a massive blow to Mr Brown and comes after two other Cabinet ministers walked out earlier this week.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Do you have a Brit pinglist?
You beat me by a couple of minutes lol.
He called on Brown to go to the country, so to speak.
Do you think Brown will have the class and good sense to do so?
Dear Gordon,Emphasis mine.We both love the Labour Party. I have worked for it for twenty years and you for far longer. We know we owe it everything and it owes us nothing.
I owe it to our Party to say what I believe no matter how hard that may be. I now believe your continued leadership makes a Conservative victory more, not less likely.
That would be disastrous for our country. This moment calls for stronger regulation, an active state, better public services, an open democracy. It calls for a Government that measures itself by how it treats the poorest in society. Those are our values, not David Cameron's.
We therefore owe it to our country to give it a real choice. We need to show that we are prepared to fight to be a credible Government and have the courage to offer an alternative future.
I am therefore calling on you to stand aside to give our Party a fighting chance of winning. As such I am resigning from Government.
The Party was here long before us, and we want it to be here long after we have gone. We must do the right thing by it.
I am not seeking the leadership, nor acting with anyone else. My actions are my own considered view, nothing more. If the consensus is that you should continue, then I will support the government loyally from the backbenches. But I do believe that this question now needs to be put.
Thank you for giving me the privilege of serving.
Yours,
Rt Hon James Purnell MP
Is it local elections?? The evil Dems should be imploding like NuLabour scum.
I wish America had a newspaper like the UK Telegraph. Bless the owners the Barclay brothers. One of the only honest and objective newspapers in the English speaking world.
No...Brown spent more than 10 years bullying his way to this job. He will almost certainly be gone by this time next week. There will be more resignations..he is finished, but like Thatcher (sorry to compare him to such a great leader) he will be removed by force. It will be a brutal week for British politics.
From sky news.....
Adam Boulton stood outside a dark No 10; “the lights have gone out in Downing Street, I have stood here manytimes over the years at this time of night and have seldom seen such a lack of activity”.
“The Labour Party is imploding in front of our eyes”
But such jolly fun to watch!
There are local elections tonight and Sky leaves me with the impression Labour is getting slaughtered.
Thge expected slaughter could not happen to worse vermin except maybe our Islamo-Democrats while the UK Lib Dems are not much better than NuLab.
22.22 Graham Allen, Labour MP for Nottingham North, is also calling on Brown to step down. Says there is a "great pool of talent" who could replace him.22.15 Fraser Nelson of The Spectator is speculating on Sky News that four or five ministers could follow Purnell's lead within hours, which would leave Brown in an untenable position. Lord Mandelson has been in to see the Prime Minister this evening, offering counsel.
22.12 Purnell broke his resignation to (at least) three papers and the BBC, for maximum damage to Brown. To say he didn't want to go lightly would be an understatement. The Guardian: "The smooth assassin" The Sun: "I quit, now you quit" The Times: Dear Gordon, I quit.
lol well if it means we get rid of this awful government then yeah it’ll be fun!
This was pulled from Breaking News and put in Front Page News.
Pity that, as Brown gives every indication of being toppled even as we speak.
There are rumors tonight David Miliband...the young pretender to Browns thrown will resign as foreign secretary tommorow which would be the end of it.
Make no mistake he is finished...I’d be surprised if he’s still PM next week...it looks like a miracle...but stranger things have happened I guess.
Hang in their Brown - don’t give up. Many people like you. ;-) Maybe he will drag NuLab to the #4 party.
Meanwhile O goes on with his Islam dhimini apology tour. Amazing. If we had a paper like the UK Telegraph in America, they would be writing articles on what an evil clown Hussein is.
But wouldn’t Alan Johnson be a stronger opponent for the Tories to face when a snap general election is called?
A minority Government and defeat?
Hey! Just had a thought... suppose all of Obama’s cabinet members walked out about a year from now because we have hyperinflation and riots in the streets... will Obama and Biden resign?
>> If we had a paper like the UK Telegraph in America, they would be writing articles on what an evil clown Hussein is <<
Let’s hope the owners of the Telegraph will buy the NYT, when the latter goes into Chapter Eleven!
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