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Labour will win election - Brown | Labour will win election - Brown |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Gordon Brown has left London for the Olympics declaring Labour will "go on and win" the next general election. | Gordon Brown has left London for the Olympics declaring Labour will "go on and win" the next general election. |
The PM, who is visiting Afghanistan en route to Beijing, also dismissed talk of an early cabinet reshuffle and rift with Foreign Secretary David Miliband. | |
He said his government would deal with the issues people were concerned about - mortgages and rising energy prices. | |
It comes as an Ipsos/Mori opinion poll has given the Tories a record 24-point lead over Labour. | |
Some 1,005 voters were questioned by telephone between 15 and 17 August and 48% said they would vote Conservative. | |
'Going to win' | |
Speaking to journalists for the first time after his summer break, ahead of his stopover in Afghanistan, Mr Brown said ministers were working on measures to help families struggling with rising bills and mortgages. | |
"These are the issues that they want us to deal with. You will see us dealing with some of these issues as we come back in September," he said. | |
The article he wrote in The Guardian was an article that any member of the cabinet could have written or I could have written Gordon Brown on David Miliband | |
When asked about Labour's election prospects, he said: "We are going to go on and win." | When asked about Labour's election prospects, he said: "We are going to go on and win." |
The 24% poll gap between Labour and the Conservatives is believed to be the biggest gap recorded since Ipsos/Mori's records began in 1977. | The 24% poll gap between Labour and the Conservatives is believed to be the biggest gap recorded since Ipsos/Mori's records began in 1977. |
The poll also found that more than three quarters - 76% - of those surveyed are unhappy with the way the government is running the country and 58% now believe Mr Cameron's party is ready for office. | The poll also found that more than three quarters - 76% - of those surveyed are unhappy with the way the government is running the country and 58% now believe Mr Cameron's party is ready for office. |
No reshuffle | |
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats were up one per cent on 16% among those certain to vote. | Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats were up one per cent on 16% among those certain to vote. |
However, the party was down one per cent from 18% to 17% among all those stating a preference. | However, the party was down one per cent from 18% to 17% among all those stating a preference. |
Mr Brown has also dismissed speculation about a possible leadership challenge by David Miliband after the foreign secretary wrote an article in the Guardian last month setting out his vision for Labour's future, without mentioning the prime minister. | |
Mr Brown said they had been "working pretty closely together on Georgia and issues related to Afghanistan". | Mr Brown said they had been "working pretty closely together on Georgia and issues related to Afghanistan". |
Georgia crisis | |
He went on: "The article he wrote in The Guardian was an article that any member of the cabinet could have written or I could have written. These are debates that all members of the cabinet have got to be involved in." | |
Mr Brown also ruled out an early Cabinet reshuffle in September, saying that he was "happy with the team". | Mr Brown also ruled out an early Cabinet reshuffle in September, saying that he was "happy with the team". |
And he dismissed claims he had not responded strongly enough to the crisis in Georgia and hinted that Russia could be left out in the cold, saying where the G7 group of most industrialised nations had a common interest "the G7 will talk as one, without them". | |
Mr Brown's surprise visit to Afghanistan, en route to the Beijing Olympics, saw him tell troops at Camp Bastion in Helmand they were "heroes", and visit soldiers in a field hospital. | |
Earlier he said a Taleban summer offensive had been expected by military forces - this week 10 French troops and one British soldier were killed Afghanistan. | |
"We've got to be prepared for anything that may happen," he said. | "We've got to be prepared for anything that may happen," he said. |
He played down fears that fighting the Taleban was becoming unmanageable, adding: "We are doing everything in our power to protect our forces." | He played down fears that fighting the Taleban was becoming unmanageable, adding: "We are doing everything in our power to protect our forces." |
Mr Brown, who is travelling to Beijing with his wife, Sarah, and two young sons, John, four, and Fraser, two, also said he would be raising the issue of human rights in talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. | Mr Brown, who is travelling to Beijing with his wife, Sarah, and two young sons, John, four, and Fraser, two, also said he would be raising the issue of human rights in talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. |
"Human rights matters to us every year, not just in Olympic year," he said. "We want them to extend the greater freedoms that they have given to journalists and the press at the time of the Olympics beyond the Olympics and further on." | "Human rights matters to us every year, not just in Olympic year," he said. "We want them to extend the greater freedoms that they have given to journalists and the press at the time of the Olympics beyond the Olympics and further on." |
Meanwhile the Conservatives say their party is best placed to tackle poverty and unfairness in society. | |
On Wednesday, shadow chancellor George Osborne told the BBC "simply chucking money at people" was not enough without tackling worklessness and improving educational chances. | |