As Gordon Brown stepped out of his electric-powered Jaguar at the palace, he could hardly believe his moment had come.

Installed as prime minister, he was about to brief the Queen on his plans for transforming Britain. He smiled inwardly: he was going to deliver another “Bank of England” moment.

For Brown’s plans, nurtured over many years, were even bolder than his ceding of power over interest rates to the bank in 1997. He envisaged devolving day-to-day control over the National Health Service to an independent board; and he wanted more local democracy, with “double-devolution” from Whitehall to local government, and from there on to even more local organisations.

But his grandest idea was one that would make even the Queen blink: a written constitution setting out the rights of every Briton — even the Queen herself.

Pure fantasy? Far from it — but if Brown is to play out such a scenario, much will be down to his performance tomorrow at the most important Labour conference of his career.

In recent years, it has been Blair who has needed to make “the speech of his life” at Labour’s annual talk-fest, rescuing his reputation with barnstorming visions of the future. But this year is Blair’s last as leader. Everyone knows he will be gone within 12 months. It’s valedictory time. For Brown, the stakes could barely be higher.

After Labour’s vicious infighting of recent weeks, in which Brown was accused of being “delusional” and a “control freak”, he has to restore his reputation and set out his vision. Too timid, and challengers to the crown will be emboldened. Too triumphal, and he’ll alienate the Blairites.

This weekend Brown is closeted at the Treasury, fine-tuning his words. He will be studying Blair’s interview today with Andrew Marr on Sunday AM, and rewriting yet again, before travelling this evening to Manchester for Labour’s conference.

HIS allies are also busily preparing the ground. Interviewed for a BBC Panorama programme tonight, Ed Balls, a junior minister and one of Brown’s closest allies, said: “People want leadership in difficult times. They want people who’ve got the courage to say ‘no’ when no is the right answer, as well as to chart a course ahead when you’ve got the vision to see where you can go.”

But what is the courage and vision of Brown?

According to some of his closest allies and aides, Brown has been quietly drawing up an agenda for his first few months in No 10. One key ally said: “Gordon is looking forward to sorting out the detritus that is left from this [Blair’s] botched exit.”

The centre-piece is expected to be radical constitutional change, with a written constitution at its heart, according to a key ally. Brown hinted at such a move in a little-noticed speech made in January, which The Sunday Times has been told reflects some of the big announcements he would make during his first 100 days in power.

In the speech, he said: “Britain is almost unique in that . . . we have no constitutional statement or declaration enshrining our objectives as a country; no mission statement defining purpose; and no explicitly stated vision of our future . . .

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