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Regime Change
Blair era ends
Tony Blair steps down as Britain's Prime Minister today, bringing to an end a decade of rule. Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown will be asked to form a government later today, after the PM hands his seals of government to the Queen.
By 15.00 GMT today, Britain will have a new Prime Minister.
The handover of power in a democracy is always a powerful and compelling moment, particularly when the outgoing Premier has been in office for an extended period and has come to be identified with a era. So much of Blair's personality defines the past ten years: His obsession with presentation and spin, his attraction to celebrity, his interest in the big picture rather than the day-to-day detail, his portentuous belief in his power to change the world.
Britain's traditional ritual of the exchange of power lends the appointment a powerful historical resonance. After answering questions in the House of Commons for the last time, Blair returns to his official residence where he will say his farewells to staff. He will then depart for Buckingham Palace to tender his resignation and hand over the seals of office. Gordon Brown will arrive at the Palace as Blair leaves; the Queen will then ask Brown to form a government. Brown will then return to Number Ten for the first time as Prime Minister.
The removal men were at work in Downing Street as early as 10AM this morning.
He received a standing ovation from MPs following his final Question Time, where he paid tribute to his party and team and wished his opponents well (though "not politically"). Opposition leader David Cameron praised Blair's work for peace in Ulster and his "work in the developing world."
Blair also paid tribute to British troops in Iraq, apologising for any danger they faced: He said that Iraq remained a "divisive issue" for the Labour Party and the country.
A Tory MP brought up the "suffocating quicksand" of the EU and, to cheers from Conservatives, demanded a referendum on the Constitution: Blair quickly retorted that David Cameron should be worried about the volume of the cheer. EURSOC tends to think that Gordon Brown should be more worried about it than Cameron.
