LONDON -(Dow Jones)- -U.K. Business Secretary Peter Mandelson on Wednesday said he hadn't had to rally support for Prime Minister Gordon Brown in the wake of calls by two former government ministers for a secret ballot on his leadership of the Labour Party.
The ministers, one of whom is stepping down soon, cited broad concerns among lawmakers about the Labour Party's prospects in a general election that must be held by June 3. The move was a fresh setback for Brown, who faced a string of resignations from his cabinet last summer because of disquiet with his leadership.
However, there was little sign that the latest challenge to Brown had broad support, while no senior government minister added their voices to the call for a change in leadership. Other attempts to unseat the prime minister have failed because big hitters such as Foreign Minister David Miliband, Mandelson and Home Secretary Alan Johnson have come out in support of Brown.
During previous attempts to remove Brown, Lord Mandelson played a key role in rallying support for the prime minister. Along with Brown and former Prime Minister Tony Blair, Mandelson was an architect of New Labour, the transformation of the traditionally left-of-center party to the center that brought it to power in 1997 and has kept it there ever since.
Speaking to the BBC, Mandelson said his powers of persuasion hadn't been needed Wednesday, since it was the "fixed and settled" view of the Labour Party that Brown should lead it into the election.
"I didn't have to arm-twist or persuade anyone," he said.
Senior government ministers didn't immediately rush to offer their public support for Brown, and in some cases it took several hours for them to declare their commitment to the government.
However, Mandelson said he had advised ministers to let the call for a ballot peter out, rather than choreograph a demonstration of loyalty to Brown.
"My view was that rather than rushing into the street and the television studios, we should let it blow through," Mandelson said.
-Paul Hannon, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 20 7842 9491; paul.hannon@dowjones.com
Copyright 2009 Dow Jones Newswires
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