Tony Blair

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The Right Hon. Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Appointed PM: 2 May 1997
PM Predecessor: John Major
Date of Birth: 6 May 1953
Place of Birth: Edinburgh, Scotland
Political Party: Labour

The Right Honourable Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair (born 6 May 1953) has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 1997, when he brought the Labour Party into power after 18 consecutive years of Conservative government.

Directly responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians following a culturally and militarily imperialistic strategy in Iraq.

After becoming Leader of the Labour Party in 1994 following the death of John Smith, Blair led the party towards the centre of British politics, using the term "New Labour" as a slogan to describe a party more favourable to private industry. However, critics to the left feel that in the process he has compromised its founders' principles, and that the government places insufficient emphasis on the redistribution of wealth. Since the September 11th terrorist attack his agenda has been dominated by foreign affairs, where he has supported the USA in the "War on Terror" and sent British forces to participate in the 2003 Iraq War and its aftermath.

Early life

Blair was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. His father Leo was a barrister and later a law lecturer who was active in the Conservative Party. Leo Blair had ambitions to stand for Parliament in Durham but was thwarted when he had a stroke when Blair was 11, an event which affected Blair deeply. He spent most of his childhood years in Durham, where between the age of 13 and 15 he worked during the school holidays as a bicycle repairer in the local hardware store, "Jonathon Willikstop's". Blair was educated at Fettes College in Edinburgh (sometimes called the "Eton of Scotland"), where he met Charlie Falconer whom he would later make Lord Chancellor. He read law at St. John's College, Oxford. During his college years he also played guitar and sang for a rock band called Ugly Rumours. He obtained a degree and went on to enroll as a trainee barrister in the Chambers of Derry Irvine where he met his future wife, Cherie Booth.

Begins political career

Shortly after graduation in 1975 he joined the Labour Party. During the early 1980s he was involved in the Hackney South Labour Party, where he aligned himself with the "soft left" who appeared to be taking control of the party. However, his attempt to secure selection as a candidate for Hackney Borough Council was unsuccessful. In 1982 he was selected to stand for Parliament in a by-election held in the safe Tory seat of Beaconsfield. He won only 10% of the vote and lost his deposit, but impressed the then Labour Party leader Michael Foot.

In 1983 Blair found that the newly-created seat of Sedgefield, near where he had grown up in Durham, had no Labour candidate. Several sitting MPs displaced by boundary changes were interested, but Blair managed to win the nomination. The seat was safely Labour despite the party's collapse in the 1983 UK general election.

In opposition

Once in Parliament, Blair's ascent was rapid. He was given his first shadow post in 1984, aligning himself firmly with the reforming tendencies in the party, headed by leader Neil Kinnock. He entered the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Energy in 1989, and worked to produce a more moderate and electable party. When Kinnock resigned after defeat by John Major in the 1992 UK general election, Blair became Shadow Home Secretary under John Smith.

In 1994 Smith died suddenly of a heart attack. Blair and close friend Gordon Brown had both been considered as possible leadership contenders and had always agreed that they would not fight each other. However, Brown had previously been thought the most senior and understood this to mean that Blair would give way to him; it soon became apparent that Blair now had greater support. At the Granita restaurant in Islington on 31 May, Brown agreed to give way. There is no conclusive evidence of the terms of any wider "Granita Pact" but supporters of Brown maintain that Blair undertook to resign from the Prime Ministership after a set period in favour of Brown. Blair was easily elected by the Labour Party electoral college as party Leader in July 1994.

Leader of the Labour Party

Shortly after his election as Leader, Blair announced at the conclusion of his 1994 conference speech that he intended to propose a new statement of aims and values for the Labour Party to replace the charter originally drawn up in 1918. This involved the deletion of Clause IV which had committed the party to 'the common ownership of the means of production' (widely interpreted as wholescale nationalisation). A special conference of the party approved the change in March 1995.

While in opposition, Blair also revised party policy in a manner which enhanced the image of Labour as competent and modern. He used the term "New Labour" to distinguish the party under his leadership from what had gone before. Although the transformation aroused much criticism (its alleged superficiality drawing fire both from political opponents and traditionalists within the "rank and file" of his own party), it was nevertheless successful in changing public perception. At the 1996 Labour party conference Blair stated that his three top priorities on coming to office were "education, education, education".

Aided by disaffection with the Conservative government (who were dogged by allegations of corruption, and long running divisions over Europe), "New Labour" achieved a landslide victory over John Major in the 1997 UK general election.

First administration, 1997–2001

Blair and United States President Bill Clinton embrace.

Immediately after taking office, Chancellor Gordon Brown gave the Bank of England the power to set interest rates autonomously. The traditional tendency of governments to manipulate interest rates around the time of General Elections for political gain is thought to have been deleterious to the UK economy and helped reinforce a cyclical pattern of boom and bust, for which Blair frequently criticises previous governments. Brown's decision was popular with the City, which the Labour Party had been courting since the early 1990s. Together with the government's avowed determination to remain within projected Tory spending limits, it helped to reassure sceptics of the Labour Party's new-found fiscal "prudence". Brown, who had his own following within the Labour Party, was a powerful and independent Chancellor who was given exceptional freedom to act by Blair, although later reports by Downing Street insiders have said that Blair grew to regret this as he was cut out of important fiscal decisions.

A significant achievement of Blair's first term was the negotiation of the Belfast Agreement, commonly called the Good Friday Agreement, in which the British and Irish Governments and most Northern Irish political parties established an "exclusively peaceful and democratic" framework for power-sharing in Northern Ireland. Negotiations for this accord had begun under the previous Prime Minister, John Major. The agreement was finally signed on 10 April 1998, and on 26 November 1998 Blair became the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to address the Republic of Ireland's parliament. Though the agreement has yet to be implemented in full, the ceasefires and political structures it brought into being have increased the chances of a sustained peace.

File:Chequersbb.jpg
Blair welcomes US President George W. Bush to Chequers, a countryside retreat in England

Blair's first term saw an extensive programme of constitutional reform. A Human Rights Act was introduced in 1998, a Welsh Assembly and a Scottish Parliament were both set up, and most hereditary peers were removed from the House of Lords, in 1999, the Greater London Authority was established in 2000, and the Freedom of Information Act was passed later that year, with its provisions coming into effect over the next decade. This latter proposal disappointed campaigners whose hopes had been raised by a White Paper of 1998 which promised a more robust Act.

In 1999, Blair presided over British involvement in the Kosovo War. The Labour Party in opposition had criticised the Conservative government for weakness over Bosnia, and Blair was one of those urging a strong line by NATO against Slobodan Milosevic. He persuaded the US Clinton administration to support the use of ground troops should aerial bombardment fail to win the war, although in the event they were not needed.

In the 2001 UK general election, Blair defined the election as being about improvements to public service. This specifically included the National Health Service. The Conservatives largely ignored the issue of public services in favour of opposing British membership of European Monetary Union, which proved to do little to win over floating voters: the Labour Party preserved its majority, and Blair became the first Labour Prime Minister to win a full second term. However the election was notable for a sudden and large fall in voter turnout. The leader of the Conservative Party, William Hague, resigned, becoming the first Conservative Party leader never to have served as Prime Minister; his successor Iain Duncan Smith became the second, and currently last, holder of this distinction (though Austen Chamberlain never became Prime Minister, he only led the Conservative MPs, and thus technically was never the leader of the Conservative Party).

Second administration 2001—present

Following the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center, Blair was very quick to align the UK with the US, engaging in a round of shuttle diplomacy to help form and maintain the allied coalition prior to their attack on Afghanistan (in which British troops participated). He maintains this role to this day, showing a willingness to visit countries on diplomatic missions that other world leaders might consider too dangerous to visit.

Iraq war

Blair was a strong supporter of U.S. President George W. Bush's controversial plan to invade Iraq and overthrow dictator Saddam Hussein. Blair soon became the face of international support for the war, often clashing with French President Jacques Chirac, who became the face of international opposition. Regarded by many as a more persuasive orator than Bush, Blair gave many speeches arguing for the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in the days leading up to war.

Blair shakes hands with President Bush on 28 June 2004

Blair made a case for war against Saddam based on Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction and breach of UN resolutions, but was wary of making a direct appeal for regime change. More than 20,000 British troops were deployed to assist with the 2003 invasion of Iraq. When after the war it was established that Iraq possessed no usable weapons of mass destruction, Blair's pre-war statements became a major domestic controversy. Many members of the Labour Party, not only those who were opposed to the Iraq war, were among those critical; among opponents of the war, accusations that Blair had deliberately exaggerated the threat were made. However, successive inquiries (including those by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee of the House of Commons, Lord Hutton and Lord Butler) have found that Blair honestly stated what he believed to be true at the time.

Blair and Bush were unsuccessfully nominated in 2004 for the Nobel Peace Prize by Jan Simonsen, a maverick Norwegian politician. Several anti-war pressure groups want to try Blair for war crimes in Iraq at the International Criminal Court (Bush cannot be tried because the USA is not a signatory to the treaty). The Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, stated that the invasion was "illegal" in September 2004.

Domestic politics

After fighting the 2001 election on the theme of improving public services, Blair's government raised taxes to increase spending on education and health in 2002. Blair insisted that the increased funding must be matched by internal reforms. The government introduced a scheme to allow local NHS hospitals financial freedom, although the eventual shape of the proposals allowed somewhat less freedom than Blair would have liked after an internal struggle. Despite a manifesto pledge in 2001 not to introduce additional "top-up" tuition fees in universities, Blair announced that such a scheme would eventually be brought in.

On 1 August 2003 Blair became the longest continuously serving Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, surpassing Harold Wilson's 1964 - 1970 term. However, because of the crisis over the suicide of Dr David Kelly, a government scientist who had spoken to a BBC journalist precipitating a major fight between the BBC and the government, there were no celebrations. Blair set up an inquiry under the senior Law Lord Lord Hutton.

The second reading vote on the Higher Education Bill bringing in top-up fees was held on January 27, 2004 and saw the government scrape a majority of 5 due to a Labour rebellion. A first House of Commons defeat had been possible but averted when a small number of Gordon Brown's backbench allies switched sides at the last minute. The next day the Hutton Inquiry reported on the circumstances surrounding the death of David Kelly. The Inquiry was widely expected to criticise Blair and his government. In the event, Hutton absolved Blair and his government of deliberately inserting false intelligence into its dossier, but criticised the BBC editorial process which had allowed unfounded allegations to be broadcast.

Although vindicated by the Hutton Report, the evidence presented to the Inquiry shed light on the assessment and use of intelligence in the run up to the war in Iraq. The picture that emerged was not one of unalloyed good practice. Perhaps in part to head off criticism about the narrow scope of Hutton's findings (see Hutton Inquiry#Media reaction to the report), and almost certainly influenced by a similar decision taken by the US President, Blair initiated another inquiry (the Butler Review) - this time into the validity of the intelligence. Blair's critics said that this new inquiry would not look at the use of the intelligence by the government, and was thus still unsatisfactory.

In April 2004, Blair announced that a referendum would be held on the ratification of the EU Constitution. This represents a significant change in British politics, where only one nationwide referendum has been held (this was the 1975 referendum on whether Britain should remain in the EEC). It was a dramatic U-turn for Blair, who had previously dismissed calls for a referendum unless the constitution fundamentally altered Britain's relationship with the EU; Michael Howard eagerly seized on the "EU-turn", reminding Blair of his 2003 conference oration that "I can only go one way. I haven't got a reverse gear." The British referendum on EU constitution is expected to be held in early 2006.

During his second term Blair has increasingly become the target for protests. On 19 May 2004 he was hit by two condoms filled with purple flour in the House of Commons, thrown by Fathers 4 Justice. His speech to the 2004 Labour Party conference was interrupted both by a protester against the Iraq war and then by a group who opposed the government's decision to allow the House of Commons to ban fox hunting.

On 15 September 2004 Tony Blair delivered a speech on the environment and the 'urgent issue' of climate change. In unusually direct language he concluded that If what the science tells us about climate change is correct, then unabated it will result in catastrophic consequences for our world... The science, almost certainly, is correct. The action he proposed to take appeared to be based on business and investment rather than any tax or legislative attempts to reduce CO2 emissions: ...it is possible to combine reducing emissions with economic growth... investment in science and technology and in the businesses associated with it... The G8 next year, and the EU presidency provide a great opportunity to push this debate to a new and better level that, after the discord over Kyoto, offers the prospect of agreement and action. [1]. If he does press the issue at the G8, this would be expected to lead to conflict with the United States, which has opposed the Kyoto Protocol.

Attempted impeachment

On 25 August 2004, Plaid Cymru MP Adam Price announced that he would attempt to impeach Blair [2]. Price argued that Blair has "caused injury to the state" and "breached his constitutional duties" by lying to Parliament. Price had the support of all Plaid Cymru and Scottish nationalist MPs, and claimed that a number of Labour backbenchers have expressed support, though only one (Peter Kilfoyle) has revealed his support to the public. The campaign is supported by the right-wing Spectator magazine and its editor, Conservative MP Boris Johnson, and has its own web site ImpeachBlair.org [3]. The impeachment can be summarised into four specific charges laid against Blair, all relating to the Iraq war:

  • Misleading Parliament and the country
  • Incompetence and negligence
  • Undermining the constitution
  • Entering into a secret agreement with the President of the United States

The "impeachment" is by now an archaic method of bringing to trial those who cannot or should not be tried by a lesser court than Parliament. An impeachment process could be initiated by a single MP, but must be voted for by a majority of MPs in the (currently Labour-dominated) House of Commons. If this resolution passes, Blair would be brought to trial before the House of Lords; if found guilty, he would be removed from office. However the procedure cannot begin until the Speaker of the House of Commons allows debate on the impeachment motion. No impeachment has been attempted for one hundred and fifty years, and no impeachment resolution has been passed since 1806; the last two impeachment trials resulted in acquittals.

Private life

Tony Blair
Tony Blair

Blair married fellow barrister and QC Cherie Booth on March 29, 1980. They had met in 1976 whilst both were pupil barristers in the same Chambers. They have three sons (Euan, Nicky, and Leo) and one daughter (Kathryn). Leo holds the distinction of being the first child born to a sitting Prime Minister in 150 years. While the Blairs have been keen to shield their children from the media spotlight, this has not always been possible. Leo became a focal point for a debate over the MMR vaccine when Tony Blair refused to confirm whether his son had received the controversial treatment.

Euan Blair hit the headlines after police found him "drunk and incapable" in Leicester Square, London while out celebrating the end of his GCSE exams in July 2000, just days after his father had proposed on-the-spot fines for drunken and yobbish behaviour. Blair has twice lodged complaints about press stories concerning his children. However, the fact that the family have occasionally held photocalls together has led some to accuse him of exploitation, and such photographs have been used on Private Eye covers.

Blair is an Anglican of the High Church or Anglo-Catholic tendency, while his wife is Roman Catholic and his children are (according to Catholic doctrine) brought up in that faith. Blair has not sought to make a political issue of his faith, though biographers agree that his political beliefs have been profoundly influenced by it. One name often mentioned as a theological influence is the Scottish Christian philosopher John Macmurray. Some have suggested Tony Blair is the most devout Prime Minister since William Ewart Gladstone.

Health problems

On October 19, 2003 it emerged that Blair had received treatment for an irregular heartbeat. Having felt ill the previous day, he went to hospital and was diagnosed with supraventricular tachycardia. He was given a small electric shock to correct the heartbeat and returned home that night. He took the following day (October 20) a little more gently than usual and returned to a full schedule on October 21. Downing Street aides later suggested that the palpitations had been brought on by Blair drinking lots of strong coffee at an EU summit and then working out vigorously in the gym. However, former Armed Forces minister Lewis Moonie, a doctor, said that the treatment was more serious than Number 10 had admitted: "Anaesthetising somebody and giving their heart electric shocks is not something you just do in the routine run of medical practice", he claimed.

Family problems in the spring of 2004 fueled speculation that Blair was on the brink of stepping down. A close friend of the Blair family Lord Bragg admitted that Blair was "under colossal strain", that "considerations of his family became very pressing" and that Blair had thought "things over very carefully." This led to a surge in speculation that Blair would resign. Several cabinet ministers urged Blair to continue.

On October 1, 2004 Blair underwent a catheter ablation to correct his irregular heartbeat, having announced the procedure the day before in a series of interviews in which he also declared that he would seek a third term but not a fourth. The planned procedure was carried out at London's Hammersmith hospital. At the same time it was disclosed that the Blairs had purchased a house at No.29 Connaught Square, London, for a reported £3.5 million. Some have speculated that part of No.29 is to be converted into offices a future Blair Foundation. The purchase also fuelled speculation that Blair was preparing for life after government.

Satirical caricature

As is usually the fate with British Prime Ministers, he has become the central focal point of satire in the magazine Private Eye. A regular feature is the St Albion Parish News, in which recent political events and Blair's penchant for spin and his zealous enthusiasms are pilloried. In this series the parish incumbent (Rev. A.R.P. Blair MA (Oxon)) combines a relentless trendiness with a tendency to moralise and to exclude all those who criticise him.

Blair has avoided traditional pigeon holes of British political leaders. He has been labelled as insincere ("King of Spin", "Phoney Tony") and accused of "cronyism" due to his perceived penchant for promoting his friends to top jobs; the fact that "Tony" rhymes with "crony" has helped make this into easy slogans. Since 2001, he has been called "Bush's poodle" due to his co-operation with the USA — an alliance somewhat upsetting to many supporters of his party, which traditionally allies with the Democrats.

His name is commonly deliberately mis-spelled as Tony Bliar (or simply "B. Liar") by people who don't like what he has done, what they think he has done, his policies (particularly his stance on Iraq - something opposed by many people who otherwise would support him), or who simply dislike him personally. He has also been parodied in the comic 2000 AD in the series B.L.A.I.R 1 where he acts as a sort of futuristic crime fighter controlled by an Artificial Intelligence known as "Doctor Spin".

Quotations

  • "But what has come home to me more than anything else is the utter futility of Opposition. I did not join the Labour Party to protest. I joined it as a party of government and I will make sure that it is a party of government." - From Tony Blair's speech to the TUC, September 1995
  • "Ask me my three main priorities for government, and I will tell you: Education, education, and education" - From Tony Blair's speech to the Labour Party Conference, October 1, 1996
  • "She was the people's princess and that is how she will stay, how she will remain in our hearts and minds forever." - Remarks in Sedgefield on the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, August 31, 1997
  • "As Britain knows, all predominant power seems for a time invincible, but, in fact, it is transient. The question is: What do you leave behind? And what you can bequeath to this anxious world is the light of liberty" — From Tony Blair's speech to the U.S. Congress, 18 July 2003
  • "I can only go one way. I've not got a reverse gear." — From Tony Blair's speech to the Labour Party Conference, 30 September 2003
  • "My prediction that he would be a disaster has turned out to be wrong and I think when that happens in politics you should just be open about it..." — On London Mayor Ken Livingstone's readmission to the Labour Party
  • "A day like today isn't time for soundbites — we can leave them at home, but I feel that the hand of history is on our shoulder, I really do." — On negotiating the Good Friday Agreement

Tony Blair's First Cabinet, May 1997–June 2001

Changes

Tony Blair's Second Cabinet, June 2001–present

Changes

See also

Preceded by:
John Smith 		Leader of the British Labour Party
1994– 		Followed by:
Current Incumbent
Preceded by:
John Major 		Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
1997–
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