LONDON, (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Gordon  Brown apologised yesterday for offensive emails about top  opposition figures sent by one of his most influential aides, as  the government tried to refocus attention on next week’s Budget.

Emails containing unfounded smears about Conservative leader  David Cameron and his economics spokesman George Osborne sent by  Brown’s close aide Damian McBride to a Labour campaigner were  made public by a political blogger last week.

The smears provoked outrage for their lurid nature but also  because Brown promised to end political spin and so-called  “black arts” when he assumed power from Tony Blair in 2007.

McBride, feared and respected in equal measure by all  parties as one of Brown’s most canny and resilient enforcers,  resigned over the Easter weekend.

“I’m sorry about what happened,” Brown said during an  appearence in Glasgow in Scotland.

“When I saw this first I was horrified, I was shocked and I  was very angry indeed. The person who was responsible went  immediately.”

“I take full responsibility for what happened — now we’ve  got to get to the business of getting this country through the  most difficult times.”

The scandal has threatened to overshadow Brown’s lauded  achievements at the London G20 summit and next week’s Budget,  which is already shaping up to be one of the most gloomy in  decades given an economic slump and soaring public debt.

Brown must call an election by mid-2010 with the  Conservatives maintaining a commanding lead in opinion polls.