Wed, 08 April 11:00 2009

Brown’s blue-eyed fiscal fiasco

POLITICIANS hop from capital to capital in search of flattering sound-bites and striking photo-calls, especially when, like the UK’s Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, they desperately require to polish their images. Prior to last week’s G20 summit, called to chew over the ongoing economic crisis, Brown travelled to Latin America and, although he was received with courtesy and the photo-calls were gratifying, the sound-bites were less than he hoped for.
In a famous slip of the tongue, Brown referred to ‘saving the world’, but his vision for stimulating the global economy is not overwhelmingly regarded as the best - or only -one. The Brazilian president, Luiz Inacio de Lula da Silva, told Brown that the current crisis “was caused by no black man or woman, no indigenous person or poor person.” White, ‘blue-eyed’ bankers fostered and boosted the recession, said Lula, who added that, before the crisis occurred, “they knew everything about economics and have demonstrated that they know nothing about economics.”
Downing Street shrugged off Lula’s remarks as being aimed at domestic consumption, although ordinary citizens – not politicians with jobs they are anxious to retain – agree with Lula. Not necessarily about the colouring of those responsible for the present economic crisis, but certainly that it originated in countries with white majorities.
Brown fared little better at the Progressive Governance Summit, on March 28 in Chile, attended by centre-left leaders who included Spain’s Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Lula, the Argentinean president, Cristina Fernandez and the US vice-president, Joe Biden.
The Chilean president, Michelle Bachelet, obliquely challenged Gordon Brown’s repeatedly hammered home message that the UK is ‘better-prepared’ than many other countries to weather the recession. Countries should put money aside during periods of economic growth, she said.
Reminding Mr Brown of other issues outside the economic downturn, Cristina Fernandez once again dragged up Argentina’s historic demands for the return of the Falkland Islands. But Brown made it clear that there was nothing to discuss regarding the sovereignty of the Falklands. “Our first priority will always be the needs and the wishes of the islanders,” he stressed, but also said that Britain would be happy for the islanders to come to agreement with Argentina regarding flights to and from the mainland.
Gordon Brown was a good enough Chancellor at a time when business was booming. He has had the bad luck of becoming Prime Minister at a time when the wolf is at the door but, regardless of personal colouring, he knows that he must assume at least part of the responsibility for Lula’s ‘blue-eyed’ fiasco.

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