Gordon Brown will today attempt to pick up the pieces of his premiership after a disastrous 48 hours during which he was forced to call off the planned general election. He will face a grilling at a Downing Street press conference that will be dominated by his decision to pull back from the brink, and in the Commons he will make a statement on Iraq outlining troop withdrawals. That will give David Cameron and Tory backbenchers the first opportunity to tackle Mr Brown over his election indecision.Even Mr Brown's closest allies admit that it has been a terrible few days for the Prime Minister. One said: "It's a bad moment. There will be a hit, but we need to absorb it." The Prime Minister hopes that Whitehall spending announcements in tomorrow's Comprehensive Spending Review will help start Labour's recovery. (Daily Telegraph)
