This in an interesting bit of both #Politics and #Journalism. First, the politics. Let's start with the one from The Times :
https://archive.is/2024.03.10-213207/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/2e7e0631-95da-4491-bb06-2f087ef46417

Under plans being developed by Starmer’s team, a series of new “mission boards” will be created to focus on the party’s pledges to grow the economy and reform public services. Starmer is looking at creating a powerful new executive cabinet that would make key decisions in advance of them being presented to the cabinet, which is seen as too unwieldy to have proper policy debates.

The so-called gang of four would include Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, Angela Rayner and Pat McFadden, who is set to become one of the most important figures in a future Labour government as the prime minister’s “enforcer”. Starmer also intends to create a powerful new policy delivery unit, reporting directly to him, which would concentrate on his priorities across Whitehall. He is considering appointing a senior business figure to run it.

For the first time, outside experts and business leaders could be included alongside civil servants and ministers on these boards and be involved in directly devising policy. Departments would be held to account by a powerful new policy delivery unit, reporting directly to Starmer, which could be led by a senior business figure rather than a full time civil servant.

Okay from this I'd probably mark myself down as interested-skeptical. Sure, central government is malfunctional and a smaller cabinet sounds like an obvious step forward (32 is too large). But four sounds like going too far in the other direction. It all sounds a bit... feudal ? Then again, bringing in outside experts sounds like a potential winner, depending on how they're selected and by whom.

Now for the journalism side of things we need to go to two pieces. The first is from the Financial Times :
https://archive.is/2024.03.10-205454/https://www.ft.com/content/bb249ae9-373a-4923-814e-c666455c28ca

It gives a few more details on the proposals but not much. What interests me is how it reports the, err, report :

The UK prime minister should break up the Cabinet Office and make big decisions with only a handful of key colleagues, according to a report set to be unveiled on Monday by former premiers Sir John Major and Gordon Brown... The review, which will be launched by former Conservative and Labour prime ministers Major and Brown, is the result of a year-long “commission on the centre of government” convened by the IfG.

Righto, seems pretty clear that it gets Gordon Brown's seal of approval then. Pretty unambiguous, or so it seems to me. But then we go to the final piece from Sky News :
https://news.sky.com/story/gordon-brown-likens-starmers-plans-for-slimmed-down-cabinet-to-rule-under-chairman-mao-13092705

Former prime minister Gordon Brown has drawn parallels between Sir Keir Starmer's plans for a four-person cabinet with revolutionary communist China. Mr Brown said he was "shocked" by reports that Labour intends to form a new four-person executive cabinet if it wins the next election.

Ooo...kay ? So this leaves me perplexed. Apparently Gordon Brown is one of the main front men in launching a report about ideas that he hates. I'm lost.