We not only saved the world

The first line of an opinion piece by economist Paul Krugman published in The New York Times on 12 October 2008 was "Has Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, saved the world financial system?"

with Krugman stating that Brown and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, had "...defined the character of the worldwide rescue effort, with other wealthy nations playing catch-up".

[5] Sketch writer Simon Hoggart wrote in The Guardian that the comment may have been a Freudian slip, and added that Brown was buried under a "sudden, overwhelming mountainous avalanche of laughter" and "hooting derision, chortling, spluttering, screeching and general mayhem filled the Chamber like oil in a lava lamp, bubbling and swirling".

[6] The Liberal Democrat MP Susan Kramer said that her fellow parliamentarians "roared with laughter" at the comment because "you can practically see him [Brown] getting into the Superman outfit" before he enters the House of Commons.

[1] The Labour Party MP Patricia Hewitt said that the comment would "[excite] people in Westminster" for a couple of hours and that Brown himself had been smiling after it.