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| Brown pledge to 'rethink' policy | Brown pledge to 'rethink' policy |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged to "rethink" policy to tackle changing pressures on the government. | Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged to "rethink" policy to tackle changing pressures on the government. |
| In an article for The Monitor, Mr Brown said global and domestic challenges had changed since the party came to power. | In an article for The Monitor, Mr Brown said global and domestic challenges had changed since the party came to power. |
| "And so, the way we govern must change too. That is why in Manchester this year it is time to adapt and rethink New Labour policy," he wrote. | "And so, the way we govern must change too. That is why in Manchester this year it is time to adapt and rethink New Labour policy," he wrote. |
| The party conference later this month follows weeks of speculation about Mr Brown's leadership. | The party conference later this month follows weeks of speculation about Mr Brown's leadership. |
| He has faced calls to improve his performance, with the party trailing the Conservatives by as much as 20% in the opinion polls. | |
| Conference speech | |
| In an article for The Monitor, Mr Brown said the government "must do more" and said he wanted to change in "the way we govern". | |
| Stressing that the economic challenges faced by Britain were global, he went on: "I believe that Britain is well placed to withstand the shocks that these transformations bring, but if we are to seize on the opportunities these new challenges present, then the country, the government, and New Labour must do more. | |
| "Whether global or domestic, deep-seated or just fleeting, the pressures that we face in the short-term and the long-term have all changed since New Labour first came into government. | |
| While poverty has been reduced and the rise in inequality halted, social mobility has not improved in Britain as we would have wanted Gordon Brown | |
| "And so, the way we govern must change too. That is why in Manchester this year it is time to adapt and rethink New Labour policy." | |
| Mr Brown who will be expected to give the speech of his life in Manchester when he addresses Labour delegates, also described his determination to demonstrate he can provide the leadership needed. | |
| "What I ask of our country, our government, and our party, cannot be done without leadership. | |
| "So, at conference in Manchester and in the weeks that follow, I will set out how I - and our party, and our government, and our country - must rise to conquer those challenges and to ensure fairness for all," he said. | |
| The prime minister also acknowledged improvements in social mobility under Labour had not matched expectations and had to be stepped up. | |
| "We need to be honest with ourselves: while poverty has been reduced and the rise in inequality halted, social mobility has not improved in Britain as we would have wanted," he said. | |
| "A child's social class background at birth is still the best predictor of how well he or she will do at school and later on in life. | |
| "Our ambitions for a fairer Britain cannot be satisfied in the face of these injustices." |