LONDON: Election fever is mounting in Britain, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown is preparing himself for the campaign trail by eating up to nine bananas a day, a report said today.

Brown is convinced fruit can bring “radiance,” a spokesman said, while declining to confirm the Sun newspaper report that the premier is scoffing the fruit as an alternative to his favourite KitKat chocolate bars.

Brown is gearing up for an uphill battle to hold power against the main opposition Conservatives, in elections due before June but expected on May 6. “The prime minister has always taken the view that a balanced diet is very important,” Brown’s official spokesman told reporters Monday, neither denying nor confirming the banana story.

He added: “Portions of fruit and veg taken on a daily basis can only lead to good health and radiance.” Asked about the amount of fruit he was eating, he said that any numbers were pure “speculation”.