Ups and downs

With eyes turning nervously back towards the markets before they open on Monday after another bleak weekend there will be one man quietly relishing the challenge. After a sticky beginning with Northern Rock, Labour and Gordon Brown have been given a new lease of life by the economic crisis.

After months of negative headlines and leadership speculation, media coverage has swung very much behind the PM and Chancellor, who by and large have played their game well on the international and domestic stage. Crisis is a good time for Government - it reminds people why they need them there.

What remains to be seen is how the Tories mount their challenge. Attempting to score political points is not easy when the national mood is low, and Team Cameron have occasionally been exposed as displaying a little naivety.

There's a long way to go in both the economic and political games. But polls and markets never go down indefinitely...