British prime minister Gordon Brown, fighting to reassert his authority after weeks of dire poll ratings and rebellion within his ruling party, says he has no intention of stepping down before an election due within a year.
Speaking to a Sunday newspaper, Mr Brown said he will stay on as prime minister because he wants to help Britons through the recession, not out of any desire to hang on to the "trappings of power".
"I am just getting on with the job," he told the
News of the Worldtabloid. "It is because of my purpose in politics that I am determined to lead Labour to the next general election. We must and will win."
Mr Brown trails the centre-right Conservatives by up to 20 per cent in the opinion polls with less than a year before the next parliamentary election. In a separate newspaper interview yesterday, Mr Brown said he "could walk away from all this tomorrow".
His government has been under pressure for weeks after newspapers printed leaked details of politicians' extravagant and often inappropriate claims for public money to pay for things like pornographic films, horse manure and cookies.
Voters' anger was compounded on Thursday when officials finally published the expenses claims in a heavily censored format with black marks covering key details.
A wave of ministers have resigned from Mr Brown's government, with some blaming his personal style for Labour's demise.
The former finance minister has survived calls from senior colleagues to resign to give their party a fighting chance of winning an unprecedented fourth straight election win.
Mr Brown reshuffled his top ministerial team for the second time in eight months after his centre-left Labour Party fared badly in European and local elections on June 4th.
With public trust in politicians at a low, Brown said lawmakers must work hard to restore people's faith.
He urged members of his centre-left Labour to spend part of their summer holidays in the areas they represent in parliament.
"I think MPs (members of parliament) will be wanting to be in their constituencies for a lot of time, talking to people," he told the News of the World.
Reuters