Keeping an eye on Alan Johnson

While watching Brown give a lesson on how not to do PMQ’s at a time when our troops are at war, I kept my eye on one Alan Johnson.  He is not happy.  The body language gives the game away.  He sits there motionless with his legs crossed, as he has done for the past few weeks.

When he is not on front bench staring into space he has been quietly going about his work as described here.

Then there was this quote from yesterday, when he agreed with Jacqui Smith that too much effort, political capital and time was spent trying to get a 42-day terror detention limit through Parliament:

But I think the comments of my predecessor ... should be written down and passed to cabinet members in case there is a future cabinet discussion about that.

Read into this that too much time is spent on creating dividing line with the Tories, as Brown was again attempting to do at PMQs today.

So, is the man that should be PM, and would have been by now if Labour MPs hadn't cocked up the June coup, flexing his muscles?  In his own subtle way, I think he is.