I, for one, was a bit bemused by Gordon Brown’s decision not to quit his parliamentary seat of Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath at the same time as he stood down as prime minister.
Standing outside Labour headquarters as he spoke to staff that rainy night in May, I heard a number of rumours going around, including an apparently well-founded one that he would, indeed, be “doing a Tony Blair” and leaving Westminster as well as Downing Street.
It would have made sense, as is proved by his reluctance to spend much time in the capital and his decision to spend time regrouping in his constituency instead.
Nonetheless, the reaction of the media to his decision to keep a low profile, and now to withdraw his sons from their London schools and send them to Scotland, is a bit strange. This is the same media pack that did so much to attack him when he was around.
Yes, Brown should probably reconsider his decision to stay on as an MP. But either way, surely he is entitled to a bit of peace.
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