WILL Gordon Brown reshuffle his Cabinet and who will walk the plank? Insiders reckon Chief Whip Geoff Hoon could be shuffled off to Europe if the Prime Minister decides to freshen up his team.

If Mr Hoon goes, the obvious man to fill his boots is the Deputy Chief Whip and Minister for the North East, Nick Brown. The Newcastle East MP is one of the PM's most loyal supporters and would help stiffen the party's resolve in the run-up to what will be a difficult General Election.

As a Brownite, he was dumped from the Cabinet by Tony Blair, but is a key member of Gordon's Government.

If he is promoted, will he remain as Minister for the North East after 15 months in the job? He'd have a lot on his plate as Chief Whip, but the region could do with some continuity.

ITS a few years since Dave Anderson wore his miner's boots and helmet, but Blaydon's Labour MP is cock-a-hoop that Old King Coal could be making a comeback.

At the Labour conference, Mr Anderson called for coal reserves deep under the North Sea to be mined, using new clean methods, to help reduce our reliance on oil and tackle climate change.

He was delighted when Gordon Brown backed investment in clean coal.

"At long last, someone has realised what the miners were saying over 20 years ago," he said. "I'm getting a bit old in the tooth myself to get my boots, helmet and knee pads on again, but I am glad Gordon Brown wants our black gold."

NEWCASTLE'S Lord Mayor David Wood has admitted that, as a lad, he used to sneak into the Heaton rail sheds to look at the trains.

So, it was a dream come true when he was invited by Northern Rail to launch a recent open day at the depot.

He said: "I asked if I could go on the footplate on one of the trains, much to the disgust of Margaret (his wife and Lady Mayoress), who reckoned it was something to do with boys and toys."

THEY can organise a trip to Cannes to showcase Newcastle to would- be investors, but - much to the annoyance of local ward councillors - Civic Centre bosses can't find an officer to head plans to redevelop Newbiggin Hall shopping centre.

Coun Nick Forbes, opposition Labour leader, said: 'The council falls over itself to go the South of France to meet developers, but doesn't seem to have found the way to Newbiggin Hall yet.

"Maybe they can call in next time they are on their way to the airport."

MOST observers agree Foreign Secretary and South Shields MP David Miliband didn't do his chances of becoming Labour leader much good with his conference performance.

But what about younger brother Ed, Cabinet Office Minister and MP for Doncaster, who made what was widely acclaimed as the best speech of the conference? Unfortunately it was on Saturday and hardly anyone heard it.

AFTER 35 years, Berwick MP Sir Alan Beith is the longest serving Lib Dem in Parliament and has been chief whip, deputy leader and acting leader.

But he's never had the chance to show just how good a party leader he could have been if he'd done the job full-time. At least as good as Sir Menzies Campbell and Nick Clegg, some suspect.

We'll never know, but at least people can get an insight into the man from his autobiography, A View from the North, as Mr Beith reflects on his political life.

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