BRITAIN:The Labour Party continued its pitch to socially conservative voters yesterday - this time with a promised review of laws to give more protection to citizens who use "reasonable force" against criminals.
As the Conservatives confirmed Boris Johnson as their candidate to fight Ken Livingstone in next year's London mayoral contest, Labour was sustaining speculation about a snap general election with reports of recruitment of additional personnel for any forthcoming campaign.
And for all Gordon Brown's talk of "a new politics", deputy leader Harriet Harman set the tone for what promises to be a bitter contest whenever the prime minister finally calls it - branding the Conservatives "still the nasty party", while characterising leader David Cameron as "too weak to change it".
On the final day of its Bournemouth conference, Ms Harman declared Labour more confident, determined and united than ever before. Ms Harman said "in every constituency in every part of England, Scotland and Wales there are people whose hopes for the future depend on a Labour government".
And without reference to the decision Mr Brown has reportedly still to make about the timing of an election - with none actually required until 2010 - Ms Harman promised: "We will not let them down. We will be organised, we will be mobilised, we will be determined. We are confident of our record, ambitious for the future, and so, so proud of Gordon Brown. And if we do what is right, when the time comes and we ask people for their vote, people will say - 'Yes, we want our government to be Labour'."
Mr Brown will apparently meet aides to review post-conference polling data over the weekend, with most commentators now expecting a final decision to be taken after next week's Conservative party conference in Blackpool.
Some sources still maintain Mr Brown's strategy has been to undermine the Conservative leadership while never actually intending to call a snap election. However, the impression of a party moving beyond contingency planning was reinforced yesterday as the BBC reported that a number of individuals understood to be self-employed, lobbyists or working for organisations sympathetic to Labour have been asked by the party if they could begin working for it as early as next week.
Home Office minister Tony McNulty, meanwhile, described Mr Johnson's selection as mayoral candidate as "an insult to London". For all his strengths, Mr McNulty claimed, "Boris is essentially a very clever man, but ultimately a clown".
The 43-year-old Henley MP won 75 per cent of the 20,019 votes cast in the party's "open primary" contest.