"Reform, Reform, Reform"

When Tony Blair posed the almost rhetorical question to himself of what his government's major priorities were, he answered himself with the clear mantra of "education, education, education." This soundbite was perfect for the time, it simply laid out the future government's plan that was accessible and easily understood by all. It quickly became a yardstick by which the New Labour government could be measured against and beaten by if they failed.

Thirteen years on, Gordon Brown needs a similar tactic, if he is to survive the dire local and EU election results. There is no yardstick currently available to most of the general public to measure his performance by; only the prophetic cries of "we are fixing the economy." The issue with this as a measuring instrument is twofold;

• If public are to believe Mr Brown, that the UK could not effect the recession since it was a global phenomenon, how is the general public supposed to know that the relief packages designed by the government are alleviating the problem. It could just be an upturn in world markets.
• Secondly, many people believe that Gordon Brown's policy of deregulation for the banks, in many ways exacerbated the issue in the first place.

Therefore, Gordon Brown needs to hang his hat on another policy, one which the public can see genuine results on in the short term. The expenses scandal that might of nearly ended his tenure as Prime Minister, has surprisingly presented him with a golden opportunity to show strong leadership.

By setting out a clear bill of reforms for the House of Commons, MPs' expenses and the House of Lords, Gordon Brown will then be able to be judged on a definable set of criteria.

However, it is doubtful that he will use the mantra of "reform, reform, reform."