This is the fourth in our series of posts looking at where it all went wrong for Gordon Brown. The first, second and third are here, here and here, respectively.
When did it all go wrong for Gordon? Before he even began, I now think: on the evening of 16 May, 2007, to be precise. It was then that Brown finally secured the backing of 308 Labour MPs – accounts differ as to whether it was Andrew Mackinlay or Tony Wright who pushed him over the finishing line – thus ensuring that he could not be beaten in a leadership contest. Mr Brown was not to become Prime Minister until June 27, but his coronation was ensured that night.
At the time, it was orthodox to say that a Labour contest was pointless – Gordon was bound to win – and would be counter-productive, sparking a wholly unnecessary civil war.
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