Brown considering Cabinet reshuffle

LONDON, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has told members of his government to be available in early September as he plans Cabinet changes, insiders say.

Brown plans a summit at Chequers, the prime minister's official country home the first weekend of September, and a reshuffle of the Cabinet before the Labor Party conference at the end of September, the Daily Mail reports.

Some political insiders told the newspaper that the reshuffle might be delayed because Brown is scheduled to be out of the country in late August, attending the Olympic Games in Beijing.

Recent poll numbers for Brown and the Labor Party have been even lower than President George Bush's, and the party has suffered embarrassment in recent by-elections. Labor has lost two seats that had been considered safe and in one conservative district came in fifth behind the Greens and British National Party.

This week, Foreign Secretary David Miliband has made television appearances giving faint praise to Brown while pushing his own credentials for leadership.