The ascent of David Blunkett

IT IS not definite enough to be a rumour. Perhaps you could call it a sentiment. Whatever the right word, the fact is that at some point in the past few months the name David Blunkett and the phrase “future prime minister” have for the first time begun to crop up in the same paragraph of Britain's political conversation. This is peculiar. For a start, the job is not vacant: Tony Blair made it plainer than ever during the election that he intended to serve a full second term. And if Mr Blair does have an heir apparent, it is surely his next-door neighbour, the brooding, brilliant Gordon Brown. It is widely reported, and it may even be true, that Mr Brown made Mr Blair promise him the succession at the dinner in Islington at which he agreed to give his friend a clear run at the Labour leadership after John Smith's death. Since then, Mr Brown has fulfilled his part of the putative bargain. As chancellor of the exchequer he has given Labour an invaluable reputation for economic competence. He organised the campaign that has just landed the unprecedented second term. How did that interloper Blunkett butt into the narrative?