LONDON, Sept 26: British Prime Minister Tony Blair admitted on Tuesday it can be hard to be the strongest ally of US President George Bush, as well as being a player in Europe.
But making his last speech as prime minister to the ruling Labour Party’s annual conference, he warned against anti-Americanism, which he said the main opposition Conservative Party was playing on.
“Yes, it’s hard sometimes to be America’s strongest ally. Yes, Europe can be a political headache for a proud sovereign nation like Britain,” he told delegates, referring to London’s wranglings with its European Union partners.
“But believe me, there are no half-hearted allies of America today and no semi-detached partners in Europe.”
And he added: “The truth is that nothing we strive for from the world trade talks to global warming, to terrorism and Palestine can be solved without America or without Europe.”
He also used the speech to attack opposition Conservative leader David Cameron, who has rebranded his party since taking over last year, including distancing himself from the neo-conservatives in Washington.
“Sacrificing British influence for political expediency is not a policy worthy of a prime minister,” he said.
NEW CHALLENGES: Tony Blair urged his Labour Party to focus on winning re-election by adapting to new political challenges, hoping to end a succession row overshadowing its annual conference.
Mr Blair listed the achievements of nearly a decade in office but warned members they had to unite and embrace change to tackle global issues such as climate change, organised crime and terrorism to win a fourth straight election, expected in 2009.
“The scale of the challenges now dwarfs what we faced in 1997,” he said.
“10 years on, this party faces the real test of leadership: not about what we’ve achieved in the past but what we can achieve for Britain’s future.”
Mr Blair’s popularity in the country has dwindled over his commitment to the US-led invasion of Iraq, his policies in the Middle East and his pro-market reforms. Recent opinion polls show the opposition Conservatives, under youthful leader David Cameron, forging ahead of Labour.
Labour hoped the Manchester rally would draw a line under infighting over the succession but a reported slur by Mr Blair’s wife against heir apparent, Finance Minister Gordon Brown, broke a fragile truce on Monday.—AFP/Reuters
LONDON, Sept 26: British Prime Minister Tony Blair admitted on Tuesday it can be hard to be the strongest ally of US President George Bush, as well as being a player in Europe.
