Back from the Brink 1,000 Days at Number II.

Back from the Brink 1,000 Days at Number II. Alistair Darling. Atlantic-Books. [pounds sterling]19.99. xiii + 337 + [i]. ISBN 978-0-85769-279-9. Alistair Darling was the last Chancellor of the Exchequer during the disastrous Blair-Brown years (1997-2010). His was not an easy lot and when compared to Messrs Blair and Brown he seems less tarnished by the charges of mendacity, manipulation and incompetence. As Chancellor (28 June 2007-11 May 2010) he had to face the collapse first of Northern Rock and from 2007onwards of the banking sector. Not surprisingly therefore these memoirs (or apologia) are mainly about the banking crisis and, not surprisingly, about his difficult relations with Gordon Brown--'he is not an easy man to work with'. He paints a rosy picture of the country's economy up to 2007, forgetting the disaster caused to those on private pensions by Brown's tax changes, used to raise money to throw at schemes to help youth unemployment and later dropped, having proved totally useless. He accepts that the government had 'lost its way' and had divided leadership (that is putting it mildly) but insists that it could have been re-elected. Having said that there is a degree of modesty in his account, most unusual in a politician, as he describes what went on during this period both in the Treasury and in the Cabinet, He also describes the 2010 general election, the fall of the Labour government, the inner workings of the G7, and the frustrations of the EU (where civil servants instruct ministers rather than the other way round). In a variety of asides the author gives readers little insights into government: ministers must always be seen holding folders or papers, even if blank; the outgoing Chancellor leaves a bottle of wine for his successor; twenty-five per cent of all corporate tax revenue comes from the financial services sector. He also makes some sensible suggestions for reform, e.g. in over-representation of European governments in the G20. He remains convinced of Labour's rectitude--one would hardly expect anything else--but with that caveat he gives readers a good guide to much of the life at the top of a sinking ship. (G.R.B.)