BROWN FIGHTS TO RECLAIM INITIATIVE

The Prime Minister is hoping to reclaim the political initiative after a bruising end to 2007 which saw Labour's opinion poll ratings plummet.

A Populus poll on Tuesday in The Times newspaper shows Labour narrowing the Tory lead to just four points compared with an eight-point gap last month.

The reduction, however, was almost entirely due to a surge in support for the Liberal Democrats, following the election of new leader Nick Clegg, at the expense of the Conservatives.

And Mr Brown also saw his own personal leadership rating fall behind Tory leader David Cameron.

In an attempt to generate some political momentum, ministers are gearing up for a series of major policy announcements - including the expected go ahead for a new generation of nuclear power stations later this week.

Mr Brown took the lead on Monday when he unveiled plans for a new NHS programme to screen for preventable diseases.

And he will join Children's Secretary Ed Balls on Tuesday in launching the National Year of Reading in a bid to encourage more youngsters to take up books.

But while ministers hope that they have put the worst of last year's troubles behind them, they know that they face a tough 12 months ahead.

Mr Brown has warned of a difficult year for the economy in the wake of the global "credit crunch" triggered by the collapse of the sub prime credit market.