British Prime Minister looks to US for fundraising tips

When Gordon Brown visited the United States last week he met with all three presidential candidates. Why, you might ask?

It appears he is looking for help "in wiping out the lead that the Tories have established over Labour in the dash for political cash."

The Prime Minister has told The Times his party is examining the fundraising success of the two Democratic presidential candidates, both of whom regularly generate more than $1 million (£500,000) a day through small donations on the internet.

“We are watching closely how they’ve managed to extend their reach to new groups of supporters and donors,” he said during a trip to Washington last week. “The political systems are not the same and there are legal constraints about asking for money in unsolicited e-mails. But we’re certainly interested in what we can learn.” Mr Brown, a keen student of American politics, met both of the Democrat contenders and John McCain, the Republican nominee. According to latest figures, Mr Obama raised more than $40 million last month – the bulk of it online, via a donor base of more than one million individuals.

Oiy. One more bad habit we can export to the rest of the world.