If Brown's forecasts fail, he will have to weather the storm

Robert Chote

Published on 27 September 2005

This article was published in The Guardian on 27th September 2005.

The economy remains in fairly good shape, but the chancellor's self-imposed rules may have put him in unnecessary danger.

As he addressed Labour's conference yesterday, Gordon Brown's position as heir apparent to the premiership was looking more secure than ever. But as he swept into Brighton after his trip to Washington for the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, clouds were gathering. The chancellor's reputation for mastery of the domestic policy scene is threatened by weaknesses in the economy and public finances.

Authors

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Robert Chote