Labour Government Gone Pear Shaped

Alan Johnson, the health secretary, has joined a cabinet push for a major overhaul of the way Britain is governed, in what will be seen by MPs as the start of a leadership bid.
His backing for electoral reform - which would mean scrapping the first-past-the-post system on which Westminster MPs are elected in favour of some form of proportional representation (PR) - came as John Denham, the skills secretary, also let it be known that he favours considering a number of "radical steps", including electoral reform.
The move is seen as a potential way of restoring trust between voters and parliament and drawing a line under the expense scandal. Electoral reform could make it easier to remove MPs who have transgressed, although its detractors argue that it risks benefiting the BNP, Ukip and other fringe parties.
Jon Cruddas, the Dagenham MP who narrowly missed out on the deputy Labour leadership last year, said the crisis required "radical shock treatment", adding: "The way to do that is to introduce proportional representation and a system of fair votes to replace the current arrangement under which a few thousand swing votes have an armlock around the body politic."
Other cabinet ministers, including James Purnell - who is pushing for a swift review of party funding to clean up another area of concern to voters - Harriet Harman and Hilary Benn are also backing a debate on constitutional and electoral reforms. The move came as ministers said that a snap election could be called for October to refresh what is now widely seen as a discredited parliament if Gordon Brown was replaced in a summer coup, most likely by Johnson
One senior minister said that if Brown survived there was no chance of an election before next spring but, "if we remove him and somebody else takes over, then clearly you would want to have an immediate election".
Polls showing the majority of voters favour an early poll have raised concerns about Labour's ability to cling on until next June - renewing speculation about possible stalking horses prepared to force a contest and deals being done to smooth the path of Johnson, now emerging as the clear favourite.