Gordon's shotgun reshuffle is too late to save Labour ; Today's Cabinet shake-up may prevent a challenge to the PM -- but it is unlikely to rescue his party's fortunes [Edition 3]

Summary

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NO ONE told them there would be days like these. It began, as polls closed the night before, with the sleek moderniser James Purnell's departure from government, leaving the clearest message yet that a Labour Party led by Gordon Brown is in line for electoral wipeout.

The sheer pace of events has forced the PM into a shotgun reshuffle: his last chance to save his leadership and the Labour Party from devastation. Mr Purnell's exit convinced Number 10 that there could be no delay: this has been the political equivalent of an episode of 24, in which every second means the difference between survival and destruction.

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Extract

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Gordon's shotgun reshuffle is too late to save Labour ; Today's Cabinet shake-up may prevent a challenge to the PM -- but it is unlikely to rescue his party's fortunes [Edition 3]

As Labour braces itself for the announcement of dire local election results later today, Mr Brown is no longer in control of his government and barely in charge of his own reshuffle. All he can do is manage the chaos as well as possible -- even if it means reversing his earlier intenti...

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