WI: PM George Brown?

What if George Brown beat Harold Wilson in the 1963 Labour Leadership election and won the 1964 General Election. What sort policies would Brown do and how would it differ from the Wilson ministry?
 
True though I think is drinking problem would be lessened as apparently alot of it was rooted in his loose to Wilson
 
He was infamously drunk before losing to Wilson; in fact, it was one of the reasons he lost to Wilson.
True but it got worse post 63 apparently,so I assuming his drinking will be noticeable but not as bad as shown by his time in government
 
True but it got worse post 63 apparently,so I assuming his drinking will be noticeable but not as bad as shown by his time in government

Even if we were to put aside the drinking, we'd still be left with a man who is at least half-sozzled half the day and who believes that all good news (or, at least, what he perceives as good news) should be shared over lunch with his journo mates. He had a spiteful streak against the left of the party, wasn't exactly enamoured with some people's decision to back Callaghan and split the right, and had less than a third of Wilson's skills in political management.

The knives would be out quicker than you can say "devaluation".
 
Even if we were to put aside the drinking, we'd still be left with a man who is at least half-sozzled half the day and who believes that all good news (or, at least, what he perceives as good news) should be shared over lunch with his journo mates. He had a spiteful streak against the left of the party, wasn't exactly enamoured with some people's decision to back Callaghan and split the right, and had less than a third of Wilson's skills in political management.

The knives would be out quicker than you can say "devaluation".

With such a bad relationship with the left alone, would he even be able to beat Home in '64?
 
With such a bad relationship with the left alone, would he even be able to beat Home in '64?

The relationship with the left thing is actually more a plus for Brown going into a general election, as the Tory attacks on Labour voters as swivel-eyed lefty loons (Quintin Hogg said words to such effect) wouldn't be so easy to make and Brown wouldn't have to deal with the unilateralism question. No, what would sink him would be the absolute state of his personal appearances and his poor ability to communicate Labour's message. Benn and the like would have to pick up the slack on television and then maybe, just maybe, the party will pull through with a Wilson-esque 1964 majority.

What comes after will be factionalism, petty personal feuds, and a fair amount of groping of Barbara Castle's behind (or patronising her to her face).
 
The relationship with the left thing is actually more a plus for Brown going into a general election, as the Tory attacks on Labour voters as swivel-eyed lefty loons (Quintin Hogg said words to such effect) wouldn't be so easy to make and Brown wouldn't have to deal with the unilateralism question. No, what would sink him would be the absolute state of his personal appearances and his poor ability to communicate Labour's message. Benn and the like would have to pick up the slack on television and then maybe, just maybe, the party will pull through with a Wilson-esque 1964 majority.

Ah, okay. That makes sense. He'd be sunken on other issues.

and a fair amount of groping of Barbara Castle's behind (or patronising her to her face).

What's this a reference to?
 
What's this a reference to?
First I'd read of it, probably this, "Barbara Castle thought him 'emotion- intoxicated, not drunk', she also recorded that when she had gone through the division lobby with him at 10 o'clock he had unbuttoned the back of her blouse and 'grinned like a schoolboy'."
 
Ah, okay. That makes sense. He'd be sunken on other issues.

It isn't impossible for a win, though, it has to be said.

What's this a reference to?

Unfair of me to rope Brown into this, but it's not actually a criticism of him. Wilson groped Barbara Castle's buttocks once and she gave him a bollocking for it, reducing him to grovelling and asking for forgiveness - he tried to act like 'one of the lads' and it backfired horribly. The other thing is a reference to Callaghan (and others of a slightly more misogynistic bent) - he hated her, thought she was a poisonous woman. He especially didn't like Castle - A WOMAN - getting ahead of him in the leadership odds in '68/'69.

Brown would probably see her much the same as Callaghan did and the atmosphere for women (most of whom were ideologically opposed to Brown) would be toxic.
 
Not having much expertise or interest in 1960s British politics, I will not make a lengthy comment, but I did check Brown's Wikipedia bio, and he got devaluation right, advocating for it in 1965-6.
 
Not having much expertise or interest in 1960s British politics, I will not make a lengthy comment, but I did check Brown's Wikipedia bio, and he got devaluation right, advocating for it in 1965-6.

But, he then criticised Wilson doing it in '67 and said he would "push against my will to oppose the thing". I'll have to consult my copy of White Heat, but I'm pretty sure he was anti-devaluation in 1964.

Brown's opinions changed with the wind and especially when he wanted a new reason to resign, unresign, resign, unresign, ad nauseam.
 
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