Gordon Brown is a very intelligent man. Unfortunately, this is tempered by the fact that he has the charisma of a bag of cabbage.  However, somebody in Downing Street clearly saw an opportunity to rectify this when they responded to little England’s petition to make Jeremy Clarkson Prime Minister with a video posted on YouTube.

If you’ve not seen it, watch it here. Otherwise, bear with me for a thirty-second summary: The video opens with the words: “Thanks to the 49,447 people who signed the petition to make Jeremy Clarkson Prime Minister. You make a compelling case… ”

We then see the doors to number 10, which open and we pan up the staircase, which is lined with photographs of past prime ministers before we arrive at the top, and a picture of Clarkson. This is then followed by by the words: “But on second thoughts… maybe not.”

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not barrelful of monkeys, farts in the bath, Arrested Development funny, but it’s worth a wry smile and a blog post. It’s a sign that this Government does have some charisma about it, and, perhaps more importantly, imagination.

Which is why the furore it’s caused is mind-boggling. The Conservatives described it as a waste of tax-payers’ money, presumably while they finished pouring the 140th bottle of Dom Perignon into their champagne jacuzzi. Scores of people have been scribbling furiously to newspapers claiming their petition isn’t been taken seriously, but then if you ask a stupid question….

They claim it shows Labour is “detached”. Since when is having a sense of humour being detached? I find it incredible that so many people can be so outraged by something so very insignificant. If the Government has misjudged the public mood on this one, then quite frankly maybe the public just needs to cheer up a bit.

Personally, and I think for the vast majority of people, the video is a very human response to a completely ridiculous proposition. It shows personality, and God knows, Brown needs to start showing some of that. Sadly, the outcry is probably going to get the video’s creator a slap on the wrist and an edict never to display any imagination, humour, or humanity ever again. That’s not just a pity, it’s criminal.