By Westminster Editor James Cusick and Health Correspondent Judith Duffy
Gordon Brown is facing the growing possibility of a party revolt as it emerged yesterday that more data from government agencies has gone missing, and polls suggested the recent run of crises is damaging the government.
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HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), yesterday confirmed it was looking for another lost package containing six discs, which went missing in the post after being sent on October 10 from a tax credit office in Preston to its Whitehall HQ in London. The discs held recordings of phone conversations between an individual tax credit claimant and an HMRC helpline.
Last week the revelation that personal details of 25 million people contained on two computer discs had gone missing after being posted by HMRC sparked outrage, with the Conservatives describing it as a "catastrophic failure".
A newly published poll has suggested that the series of crises - which includes the handling of the run on Northern Rock - has wiped out Labour's reputation as the best party to handle the economy and damaged Prime Minister Gordon Brown's standing with voters.
Conservative leader David Cameron has overtaken Brown as the leader considered to have the best policies for Britain, with particularly strong support among the young. Just two months ago Labour enjoyed a 12-point lead over the Tories on managing the economy. This has been erased, with the two parties now neck-and-neck on 38%.
Leading Blairites are said to be dismayed at what has happened to New Labour's legacy under Gordon Brown.
One MP told the Sunday Herald: "Cameron telling Gordon Brown that he needed to get a grip' was a low point. Unless Gordon admits there are problems, we'll just have more problems."
When Northern Rock's difficulties became public, Brown's poll rating suggested he was seen as a "safe pair of hands" in a crisis. But the recent revelation that £25bn was lent to the bank appears to have dented this image.
The new survey says a majority of those questioned regard Brown as being bad at handling a crisis.
In the wake of the loss of 25 million people's personal details by HMRC, a slim majority (49% to 47%) also said chancellor Alistair Darling should quit.
Blair loyalists are now threatening to move against Brown should Labour's fortunes dip further in the polls.
One Blair loyalist who spent years as a policy adviser, said any resignation within the senior ranks of the Cabinet would "create havoc" before 2010, the latest date for a general election.
He said "So far there's been an image of unity. But even that in recent weeks has looked shaky. David Miliband isn't happy at the Foreign Office and other senior ministers want to see Brown widen his close circle of advisers."
Meanwhile, the Scottish government has admitted a package containing the personal details of 200 people has gone missing in the post.
The package was one of 162 sent from the Scottish Public Pensions Agency (SPPA) to NHS Greater Glasgow on October 26. It emerged yesterday that one package containing 200 statements had not been accounted for.
The statements contain names and National Insurance numbers, but no addresses and no bank account details. The package was sent by Fed Ex, the government's official courier, which is working to trace the item.
A government statement described it as a "serious matter" and said inquiries were continuing.
It added: "There is no reason to suspect fraud or theft and Fed Ex is currently working to trace the package.
"There is a review under way around data handling issues in the Scottish government."
A spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: "We await the findings of the SPPA and the Scottish government's inquiries as to its whereabouts."
But Nicol Stephen, leader of the Liberal Democrats in Scotland, said many people would be "understandably anxious" about the news.
He said: "It must move quickly to tell us what steps, if any, it has taken to secure our personal data and ensure it does not make the same mistakes as Customs and Revenue made."
