‘News sandwich’ will not soften the blow of Brian’s bad day

QUICK! Someone give Brian Cowen a “news sandwich” pronto – he needs a reality bite.

The fun-size information delicacy was first created for Gordon Brown – Europe’s other ex-finance minister crowned leader without a contest who collapsed in the polls when early popularity was swept away by a cack-handed response to the economic crash.

The daily tally of woe flowing into No 10 Downing St became so great that fearful aides started delivering the latest blow in what they called a “news sandwich” – which meant they put the big chunk of bad news in between two slices of good news to try and soften the blow and make it more digestible for the notoriously grumpy prime minister.