When Douglas Jay, a trade minister in the 1960s, went to "the Continent" he always took sandwiches with him; and although nobody suspects Gordon Brown of quite such a level of hostility to foreign parts, the chancellor's reluctance to leave home (except for America, which he likes) has fostered the belief that he shares the traditional Labour distaste for Abroad. His current trip to Africa has therefore aroused more interest than the average ministerial junket. It is not entirely clear whether Mr Brown's travels are motivated purely by concern for the poor, or are tinged by competition between himself and Tony Blair for global brownie points. What is certain is that his new-found wanderlust delights many. No doubt the citizens of South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya top the list; but it seems likely that Mr Blair is also pleased by the broadening of his colleague's horizons, and is hoping that the trip serves to quicken Mr Brown's enthusiasm for distant places.
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