The British Prime Minister， Gordon Brown， found himself in a worsening political crisis after three prominent members of his own Labour party called for a leadership contest.Brown responded by sacking all three， further damaging his public image.

英國首相戈登#8226;布朗在三名工黨高層官員主張進(jìn)行黨魁選舉后陷入越來越嚴(yán)重的執(zhí)政危機(jī)。布朗將這三名官員撤職，進(jìn)一步破壞了他的公眾形象。

Brown， who succeeded Tony Blair last year， came into office with a strong approval rate which has rapidly vanished after a series of missteps， including failing to call a general election after suggesting that one might be held in late 2007. Fallout from the Iraq War， which most British voters opposed， has also hurt his electoral chances despite being a decision made by Blair.

布朗去年支持率大幅上升，接替了布萊爾出任首相，但因?yàn)橐幌盗惺д`，包括未能舉行2007年年底大選，支持率急劇下降。撤出駐伊英軍這一決策遭到絕大多數(shù)英國選民的反對，雖然這最初是布萊爾的決定，但對布朗在下屆大選中的勝選機(jī)會同樣造成了不利。

His abolition of the lowest rate of income tax was also highly unpopular， as it imposed an additional financial burden on some of the poorest working people in Britain. Rising inflation， as well as high energy prices， have also hurt Labour's approval rating.

布朗取消最低所得稅稅率這一政策也遭到強(qiáng)烈不滿，因?yàn)檫@樣會給英國一些最貧困的勞動人民增添經(jīng)濟(jì)負(fù)擔(dān)，通脹上升及高能源價(jià)格都影響了工黨的支持率。

A leadership contest within the Labour Party looks increasingly possible. David Milliband， the current Foreign Secretary， is being touted as a possible replacement PM， as is the female Labour politician Harriet Harman.

工黨將進(jìn)行黨魁選舉的可能性日趨明顯?，F(xiàn)任外交部長大衛(wèi)#8226;米利班德和工黨女副領(lǐng)袖哈麗雅特#8226;哈曼被認(rèn)為將很有可能接任首相。

Most political commentators， however， believe that the government has been in power for too long for a replacement to have any serious impact on the election. The post may therefore prove a poisoned chalice. Conservative party leader David Cameron looks highly likely to succeed Brown at the next general election， which must be held by 2010 at the latest.

然而，大多數(shù)政治評論家認(rèn)為工黨已經(jīng)執(zhí)政多年，即使更換黨魁對下屆大選也起不了多大作用。這一寶座也許因此被視為“有毒的圣杯”。保守黨領(lǐng)袖大衛(wèi)#8226;卡梅倫在下屆大選中很有可能勝出，大選最晚必須在2010年舉行。